Department of Health and Social Care

Air Pollution

Dr David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what research his Department has (a) commissioned and (b) conducted on the health effects of PM (i) 2.5; (ii) 1 and (iii) 0.1.

Caroline Dinenage: The Department funds research mainly through the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) and this includes research on the impact of air pollution. Research commissioned and their findings are published by the NIHR at the following link: https://www.journalslibrary.nihr.ac.uk/programmes/ The Department also commissions Public Health England (PHE) and its expert Committee on the Medical Effects of Air Pollution (COMEAP) to review and conduct research on air pollution. Research findings can be found at the following link: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/comeap-reports Most recently COMEAP conducted research and analysis to quantify the mortality associated with long-term average concentrations of fine particulate matter (PM2.5) in the United Kingdom. A statement updating earlier advice on was issued on 22 August 2018 at the following link: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/734813/COMEAP_PM_2.5_statement.pdf/ Since 2014, the Department has funded at a cost of £4.4 million, the NIHR Health Protection Research Unit (HPRU) on Health Impact of Environmental Hazards, a partnership between PHE and King’s College to conduct a large programme of research on the health impact of various pollutants including PM2.5. A list of research can be found at the following link: http://hieh.hpru.nihr.ac.uk/ Key ongoing research projects are: a study to optimize the assessment of health impacts of air pollutants including PM2.5; research on the neurocognitive and behavioral impacts of traffic derived pollutants including PM2.5 in children as part of a larger study looking at cognition, adolescence and mobile phones and research on the health impacts of nanoparticles. The Department also funds at a cost £4.2 million, the NIHR HPRU in Environmental Change and Health at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, to conduct research on air pollution and health in relation to climate change. Further details can be found at the following link: http://www.hpru-ech.nihr.ac.uk/

Genetics: Screening

Justin Madders: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many of the seven contracts for Genomics Laboratory Hubs with Additional Specialised Services have been awarded; and how many of the seven hubs will be fully operational on the scheduled date of 1 October 2018.

Caroline Dinenage: As part of the Genomic Testing Services procurement NHS England is procuring Genomic Laboratory Hubs to act as a national network to deliver an equitable national genomic testing service. The procurement was launched in December 2017. The Genomic Testing Services Procurement through which the Genomic Laboratory Hubs are being procured is in its final stages and is still in a confidential phase of the process. Once the procurement has been finalised NHS England will make an announcement on the outcome of the procurement. NHS England will work with the successful bidders on a mobilisation plan covering the time period from 1 October 2018 to 1 April 2019.

NHS: Staff

Andy Slaughter: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to the report, Leak reveals worst case scenario for nursing after Brexit, published by the Health Service Journal on 6 April 2017, what modelling his Department has conducted on the effect of the UK leaving the EU on NHS staffing levels.

Andy Slaughter: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to the report, Leak reveals worst case scenario for nursing after Brexit, published by the Health Service Journal on 6 April 2017, whether (a) he and (b) other Ministers of his Department had sight of the modelling by his Department referenced in that report before that report was published.

Stephen Barclay: It has been the policy of successive Governments not to comment on specific leaks and the Government takes such incidents very seriously. Leaks are investigated thoroughly and effectively, with established policies and procedures in place. Notwithstanding this, the Department continues to monitor and analyse overall staffing levels across the National Health Service, and we are working across Government to ensure there will continue to be sufficient staff to deliver the high quality services on which patients rely following the United Kingdom’s exit from the European Union. Our overall programme of work is comprehensive, thorough and continuously updated. Our plans include working with NHS and social care employers to ensure that the 167,000 EU nationals working across health and care are aware of the straightforward and user friendly EU settlement scheme which will allow them to secure long-term status in the UK and enjoy broadly the same rights and benefits as they do now. From the NHS Digital monthly Hospital and Community Health Service workforce statistics, as at June 2018, there are over 4,300 more EU27 nationals working in the NHS and clinical commissioning group’s since the referendum.

Department of Health and Social Care: Brexit

Tom Brake: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Written Statement of 13 March 2018 on Spring Statement, HCWS540, how much of that funding he has allocated to (a) programmes, (b) administration and (c) staffing in his Department.

Caroline Dinenage: HM Treasury has allocated over £2 billion of additional funding to departments and the devolved administrations for European Union exit preparations so far. This breaks down as: - £412 million of additional funding over the spending review period for the Department for Exiting the European Union, Department for International Trade and the Foreign and Commonwealth Office at Autumn Statement 2016. - £286 million of additional funding for 2017-18. A full breakdown of which can be found in Supplementary Estimates 2017-18 which is available at the following link: https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/679738/PU2137_Supplementary_estimates_web.pdf - Over £1.5 billion of additional funding for 2018-19. A full breakdown of which can be found in the Chief Secretary’s Written Ministerial Statement, HCWS540, laid on 13 March 2018. The Department was allocated £21.1 million for costs arising as the United Kingdom leave the EU in the Spring Statement 2018. The final breakdown between programme and administration (including staffing) spend will be confirmed in the Supplementary Estimates.

Sustainability and Transformation Partnerships: Public Appointments

Diana Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 12 September 2018 to Question 171663 on Sustainability and transformation partnerships: public appointments, how many of the 44 sustainability and transformation partnership leaders were not recruited from the leadership of the local partner organisations.

Diana Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 12 September 2018 to Question 171663 on sustainability and transformation partnerships: public appointments, which of the 44 sustainability and transformation partnership leaders were not recruited from the leadership of the local partner organisations.

Stephen Barclay: 37 out of the 44 sustainability and transformation partnership leaders have been recruited from partner organisations within the local system. The remaining seven areas have appointed independent chairs or leaders. These are Greater Manchester, Sussex and East Surrey, Humber Coast and Vale, Buckinghamshire, Oxfordshire and Berkshire West, Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent, Derbyshire and Mid and South Essex.

Kidneys: Donors

Glyn Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what the total number of altruistic kidney organ donations has been in each of the last 10 years.

Matt Hancock: Information on the number of altruistic donor kidney transplants from 1 April 2009 to 31 March 2018 is available in the following table.  Number of altruistic donor kidney transplants in the United Kingdom2009/10152010/11282011/12342012/13762013/141182014/151072015/16832016/17842017/1889 This information has been taken from the annual report on living donor kidney transplantation (Figure 4.10), published by NHS Blood and Transplant in September 2018, which is available online at the following link: https://nhsbtdbe.blob.core.windows.net/umbraco-assets-corp/12257/nhsbt-living-donor-kidney-transplantation-annual-report-2017-2018.pdf

Postnatal Care

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will make it his policy to include the six week maternal postnatal check in the general medical contract as recommended by National Childbirth Trust.

Steve Brine: We are aware of the concerns of the National Childbirth Trust on this issue and will be meeting the Trust shortly to discuss them further. Inclusion of a requirement to carry out the six-week maternal postnatal check in the General Medical Services contract would need to be negotiated and agreed, as part of the annual contract negotiations. We have asked for this issue to be considered in the contract negotiations for 2019/20.

Brain: Injuries

Chris Bryant: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what estimate he has made of the cost to the public purse of (a) diagnosing and (b) treating acquired and traumatic brain injuries in each of the last five years.

Chris Bryant: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what estimate he has made of the annual cost to the public purse of people with an acquired brain injury.

Chris Bryant: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how much money was spent from the public purse by his Department on the (a) diagnosis and (b) treatment of the effects of acquired and traumatic brain injuries in each of the last five years.

Steve Brine: These data are not available in the format requested and no estimate has been made. Reference costs are the mandatory collection of costs data from all National Health Service trusts and NHS foundation trusts. Whilst there is a very wide coverage of services delivered across the NHS collected in reference costs, the diagnosis and treatment of acquired and traumatic brain injuries are excluded. This is as per table 39 of the national cost collection guidance which can be found at the following link: improvement.nhs.uk/resources/approved-costing-guidance-collections/

Young Offenders

Chris Bryant: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what estimate he has made of the number of people identified as having an acquired brain injury on arrival living in the secure estate in each of the last five years.

Caroline Dinenage: The information requested is not held centrally by the Department or NHS England.

Radioisotopes

Tim Farron: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the potential effect of not having consistent and timely access to radioisotopes on the UK's ability to deliver radiotherapy for cancer patients.

Tim Farron: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent assessment he has made of the effect on radiotherapy services for cancer patients of changes to the level of access to radioisotopes by the NHS.

Tim Farron: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what plans he has made to ensure consistent and timely access to radioisotopes in the event the UK leaves the EU without a deal.

Stephen Barclay: Medical radioisotopes are essential in the effective treatment of many cancer patients and the Government believes it is vital to ensure consistent and timely access to these products for United Kingdom patients. As a responsible Government, we continue to prepare proportionately for all European Union exit scenarios, including the possible outcome that we leave the EU without any deal in March 2019. That is why on 23 August the Government announced details of its approach to no deal EU exit medicines contingency planning. Since writing to pharmaceutical companies, we have received good engagement from the industry who share our aims of ensuring patients maintain continuity of medicines supply. The Department continues to work closely with these companies to ensure that their UK supplies of medicines, including for cancer patients, are sufficient to cope with any potential delays at the border that may arise in the short term from the possible event of a no-deal Brexit. We recognise that medical radioisotopes and some other medicinal products have short shelf lives and cannot be stockpiled. Where such products are at present imported to the UK from the EU/European Union Economic Area (EEA) via road haulage and roll-on, roll-off sea, road and rail routes, the Department is asking suppliers to ensure they have plans in place to air freight those products to avoid any border delays that may arise at the end of March next year in the event of a no deal exit from the EU. We will consider how the Department may support suppliers in making arrangements to meet this expectation. The Government has also provided information to the public and Parliament on the likely impact of the UK’s withdrawal from the EU and Euratom on the importation of radioisotopes for medical use in the possible event that the UK leaves the EU without agreement, via a series of Technical Notices. Within these, the Government confirmed that in order to ensure continuity of supply in medicines, the UK will continue to accept batch testing of human medicines carried out in EU countries, other EEA countries and those third countries with which the EU has a Mutual Recognition Agreement.

Drugs: Counterfeit Manufacturing

Tim Farron: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the financial effect on independent pharmacies of the implementation of the Falsified Medicines Directive by February 2019.

Steve Brine: The Government is continuing to work with stakeholders to inform our understanding of the potential costs of the different IT solutions and approaches to the implementation of the Falsified Medicines Directive, including in respect to independent pharmacies.

Everolimus

Rosie Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, for what reason everolimus is not available on the NHS for people with epilepsy related to tuberous sclerosis complex; and what representations NHS England has received from the Tuberous Sclerosis Association on providing everolimus on the NHS.

Steve Brine: The commissioning of everolimus is a matter for NHS England, via its specialised commissioning programme. NHS England has advised that the Clinical Priorities Advisory Group (CPAG) has considered everolimus as part of the May 2018 prioritisation round. The outcome of this was that the treatment fell into the lowest of five levels of relative priority for funding, meaning it had the lowest benefit relative to other treatments being considered at the same time and the highest relative cost per patient. As a result, the CPAG has recommended that everolimus should not be routinely commissioned. Everolimus will be considered again at the next prioritisation round in November and, should it be successful, funding would be made available from April 2019. NHS England met with the Tuberous Sclerosis Association on 25 September 2018, and explained why everolimus is not routinely funded by the National Health Service for treatment of epilepsy associated with tuberous sclerosis complex. They also discussed the outcome of the prioritisation round and the next steps.

Colorectal Cancer: Screening

Steve McCabe: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, when his Department plans to roll-out the Bowel Cancer screening programme using the faecal immunochemical home test for people aged 50 years and over.

Steve Brine: In August 2018 Ministers agreed to the United Kingdom National Screening Committee’s recommendation to offer bowel cancer screening in England at the earlier age of 50. NHS England is committed to the implementation of the Faecal Immunochemical Test, to individuals aged 60 at the threshold of 120ug/g, within the National Health Service Bowel Cancer Screening Programme and, as set out by the Prime Minister in her speech on 3 October 2018, is now considering how to transition towards lowering the screening age as part of the NHS Long Term Plan.

Royal Liverpool Hospital

Dame Louise Ellman: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what the timeframe is for (a) the restart of construction the new Royal Liverpool University Hospital and (b) the completion of the hospital; and if he make a statement.

Stephen Barclay: The Department and NHS Improvement are working with the Trust to conclude discussions and agree final terms with funders for a managed termination of the current contract. This agreement will enable the Trust to continue working with the existing main construction contractors on site to minimise any further delay and complete the hospital as soon as possible. Subject to legal agreements being reached as part of this process, construction work could restart as early as November. If this is the case, we would expect the new Royal Liverpool to be completed in 2020.

Cancer: Clinical Trials

Mr George Howarth: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to increase the number of clinical trials available to patients with one of the less survivable cancers.

Caroline Dinenage: The Department funds research into all aspects of human health through the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) at the level of £1 billion per year. Cancer comprises the largest proportion of this in terms of disease area. The NIHR Clinical Research Network has over 800 cancer trials and studies recruiting or in set-up. Through the NIHR Clinical Research Network, the proportion of patients entering cancer clinical trials and studies is more than double that in any other country for which data exists, including the United States. As with other Government funders of health research, the NIHR does not allocate funding for specific disease areas. The level of research spend in a particular area, such as less survivable cancers, is driven by factors including scientific potential and the number and scale of successful funding applications. We would welcome more high-quality research applications, including applications for clinical trials, on less survivable cancers. We work closely with research funding partners such as Cancer Research UK, the Medical Research Council, and cancer specific charities, who fund research into new scientific discoveries. Cancer Research UK has prioritised increasing research in hard-to-treat cancers including lung, pancreatic, oesophageal cancers and brain tumours. We stand ready to translate these new discoveries as quickly as possible into new treatments and diagnostics for patients via the NIHR. In May the Government announced £40 million over the next five years for brain tumour research as part of the Tessa Jowell Brain Cancer Mission. Funding will be invested through the NIHR to support a wide range of research to support the translation of laboratory discoveries into treatments and better care for patients. We are relying on researchers to submit high-quality research proposals in this very difficult area. To encourage such applications we have released a NIHR Highlight Notice on brain tumour research asking research teams to submit collaborative applications building on recent initiatives and investments.

Palliative Care: Children

Ms Angela Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how much money has been spent from the public purse on palliative care services for children in (a) Wirral (b) the North West and (c) the South East in each of the last eight years.

Ms Angela Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to reduce the time taken to provide child patients in the north west of England with palliative care.

Ms Angela Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of provision of children's palliative care in (a) the north west and (b) Wirral in each of the last eight years.

Ms Angela Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent assessment he has made of the trends in the level of funding for the children's hospice grant in the (a) north west and (b) Wirral.

Ms Angela Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what estimate he has made of the number of children requiring palliative care in the (a) Wirral and (b) north west in each of the last eight years.

Caroline Dinenage: No specific assessment has been made of provision or patient population in Wirral or the north west. As with the vast majority of NHS services, the funding and commissioning of palliative and end of life care, is a local matter, over which individual National Health Service commissioners have responsibility. Local commissioners are best placed to understand the needs of local populations and commission services to meet those needs accordingly. The only exception to this are a small number specialist paediatric palliative care inpatient services, commissioned nationally by NHS England from eight centres across England as part of its remit to deliver specialised services. Much of the routine palliative care patients receive will be provided either in outpatient or community settings, by nurses, community teams or general practitioners as part of general NHS services provision, rather than as an identified palliative care service. In such services, data are either not available or does not identify palliative treatment. In addition, social and voluntary sector organisations can provide additional support to patients at the end of life. Therefore, figures for the total cost of palliative care service for children nationally, or across local areas, is not available. Decisions regarding referral to local palliative care services will be made on the basis of clinical need. The following table shows information regarding funding provided via the Children’s Hospice Grant to hospices in the North and in Wirral over the last eight years. Nationally, children’s hospices are receiving £11 million in 2018/19 through the Children’s Hospice Grant, which is awarded annually and administered by NHS England.  North westWirral2011/12£1,522,944£353,3062012/13£1,522,944£353,3062013/14£1,562,576£353,3062014/15£1,562,576£362,5002015/16£1,562,576£362,5002016/17£1,562,576£362,5002017/18£1,562,576£362,5002018/19£1,562,576£362,500 Notes: - The children’s hospice grant programme provides a general contribution to the operating costs for hospices. It does not pay for actual services for patients in specified areas. Therefore, it is not possible to reconcile the grant payment to actual activity delivered within any geographical area. Neither does the grant pay specifically for specialised or non-specialised services as it is a general contribution.- For this analysis for the grant figure for the North West includes Cheshire, Merseyside, Greater Manchester, Lancashire and Cumbria based hospices.- The Wirral figure is for a single hospice.- Local NHS commissioners also provide funding to children’s hospices which is a mixture of grant funding and activity based payments. Due to the low value of this funding this is not routinely recorded and so is not readily available.- Local authorities also provide some funding to some hospices, but this information is not held by NHS England.

NHS: Disclosure of Information

Yvonne Fovargue: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to make NHS data by clinical commissioning group available for analysis by (a) charities and (b) other bodies that represent patients.

Caroline Dinenage: National Health Service Data is available for charities and other bodies that represent patients to apply for via the Data Access Request Service at NHS Digital. This data can be filtered in a variety of methods, such as by clinical commissioning groups. Further information, including how to apply can be found at the following link: https://digital.nhs.uk/services/data-access-request-service-dars/data-access-request-service-dars-process

Buprenorphine: Prices

Jonathan Ashworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to ensure Buprenorphine remains affordable in light of the drug's recent increase in price.

Steve Brine: As a consequence of a supply issue affecting buprenorphine earlier this year, some suppliers of buprenorphine have run out of stock and, as a result, the market price has been increasing since May 2018. The increased purchase price is reflected in the reimbursement price paid to pharmacies, to ensure that supplies remain available to patients. The market for buprenorphine has generally been competitive and we expect the supply situation to improve over the coming weeks which is likely to result in an increasingly competitive market.

Breast Cancer

Julie Elliott: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what discussions he has had with Health Education England on training more breast radiologists and mammographers.

Steve Brine: Health Education England (HEE) published its first ever Cancer Workforce Plan in December 2017, which commits to the expansion of capacity and skills including an ambition to increase improved working practices, attracting qualified people back to the National Health Service through domestic and international recruitment. This will include 668 more, full time equivalent, clinical radiologists and investing in 300 reporting radiographers by 2021 to support an increase in the capacity for earlier diagnosis. HEE intends to follow the plan later this year with a longer-term strategy that looks at the workforce needs beyond 2021. This will include exploring sustainable growth beyond 2021 in key professions through continued investment in training places, with a greater focus on attracting and retaining students and improving the numbers of qualified professionals who go on to work in the NHS.

Food: Allergies

Mary Creagh: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what guidance the Government has provided to local authorities on enforcing the labelling of allergen information on non-prepackaged fresh food.

Steve Brine: It is a legal requirement that food businesses selling non-prepacked foods, like a sit down restaurant meal, must provide accurate information on the use of allergenic ingredients. The Food Standards Agency provides guidance, tools and e-learning facilities that local authorities can use to assess compliance with the food allergen rules. They have also provided face-to-face training for enforcement officers.

Food: Allergies

Mary Creagh: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to improve allergen information on non-prepackaged fresh food.

Steve Brine: We are currently reviewing our approach to food labelling, working closely with the Food Standards Agency. This work includes examining domestic food allergen regulations, guidance and ways of working to identify options for practical and proportionate improvements to the current system. We will invite views from stakeholders including patient and campaign groups representing those with food allergies and the food and drink industry to focus on changes that enhance protection of consumers.

Allergies: Medical Treatments

Mary Creagh: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to tackle the global shortage of epinephrine auto-injectors.

Mary Creagh: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he has issued guidance to clinical commissioning groups and general practitioners on the use of epinephrine auto-injectors; and if he will make a statement.

Steve Brine: The Department is working very closely with all the manufacturers of adrenaline auto-injectors, the Medicines and Healthcare Regulatory products Regulatory Agency, NHS England, and others to try to resolve these issues and improve the situation as quickly as possible. The overall supply situation is expected to improve by the end of 2018. We issued comprehensive guidance on 28 September 2018, with input from National Health Service allergy experts. The guidance was cascaded to general practitioners, clinical commissioning groups and other healthcare professionals to help explain the issue and to advise on clinical and supply management during this time.

Dead Bodies

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what estimate he has made of the cost to the public purse of (a) reserves of blood stocks and tissues, (b) ventilated beds and (c) non-porous bags for the storage and transportation of corpses in (i) 2019-20, (ii) 2018-19, (iii) 2017-18 and (iv) 2016-17.

Stephen Barclay: The Department has made no such estimates.

Patients: Nutrition

Bill Esterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps the Government is taking to promote research and development in medical nutrition.

Caroline Dinenage: The Department funds health and care research through the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR). The NIHR funds research across a broad spectrum of areas related to nutrition to inform Government policy and clinical knowledge with a view to improving patient care and helping people stay well for longer. The NIHR welcomes funding applications for research into any aspect of human health, including medical nutrition. These applications are subject to peer review and judged in open competition, with awards being made on the basis of the importance of the topic to patients and health and care services, value for money and scientific quality. In all disease areas, the amount of NIHR funding depends on the volume and quality of scientific activity.

Food Standards Agency

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of increasing the regulatory powers of the Food Standards Agency after the UK leaves the EU.

Steve Brine: The United Kingdom has world leading standards of food safety and quality, backed by a rigorous legislative framework; we will maintain these high standards once the UK leaves the European Union.The Government remains committed to promoting robust food standards nationally and internationally, to protect consumer interests, facilitate international trade, and ensure that consumers can have confidence in the food they buy. Risk management and risk assessment functions will be transferred to the appropriate UK authorities. The Department of Health and Social Care has been working closely with the Food Standards Agency (FSA) and the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs to develop a robust regime for food safety once we exit the EU and we will continue to do so after the UK leaves the EU. The FSA’s independence and its role in providing that consumer protection will remain unchanged.

Department of Health and Social Care: Pay

Jo Stevens: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many and what proportion of directly employed civil servants in his Department earn under £50,000 per annum.

Caroline Dinenage: As at the end of September 2018, 1,044 directly employed civil servants earned under £50,000 per annum. This equates to 67% of all directly employed civil servants in the Department.

Nurses: Students

Paula Sherriff: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many students started mental health nursing degree courses in the 2018-19 academic year.

Matt Hancock: The Universities and Colleges Admissions Service (UCAS) collect data on acceptances to mental health nursing degree courses. Acceptances for 2018/19 entry can still be made until the end of clearing on 23 October 2018. The final number of acceptances for mental health nursing degree courses for 2018/19 will be available following the publication of end of cycle data by UCAS in December 2018.

Buprenorphine

Norman Lamb: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment his Department has made of the effect of the change in the price of buprenorphine on prescribing levels for people with opioid dependence.

Steve Brine: No such assessment has been made.

Drugs

Jenny Chapman: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 10 September 2018 to Question 170317, on Drugs, what estimate he has made of the number of weeks delay for medicines there will be at the UK border in the event that the UK leaves the EU without a deal; and whether that estimate has been revised since his letter of 23 August 2018 to the pharmaceutical industry.

Stephen Barclay: Our request to suppliers is for them to store an additional six weeks’ stock. This will be on top of their business as usual contingency stockpiles. Six weeks is the current cross-Government planning assumption but will of course be subject to revision in light of future developments.

Drugs

Jenny Chapman: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 10 September 2018 to Question 170318 on Drugs, what the timeframe is for industry to start its stockpiling of medicines.

Jenny Chapman: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department has the capability to monitor the stockpiling of medicines by industry after the UK leaves the EU, and what powers his Department has to compel suppliers to stockpile those medicines.

Stephen Barclay: On 23 August 2018, the Department wrote to a number of pharmaceutical companies that supply the United Kingdom with medicines from, or via, the European Union/European Economic Area, asking them to ensure they have a minimum of six weeks’ additional supply in the United Kingdom, over and above their business as usual operational buffer stocks, by 29 March 2019. Companies are best placed to decide on the timing for complying with the stockpiling request. Since writing to pharmaceutical companies, we have received good engagement from the industry who share our aims of ensuring patients maintain continuity of medicines supply. The Department continues to work closely with these companies to ensure that their UK stockpiles of medicines are sufficient to cope with any potential delays at the border that may arise in the short term from the unlikely event of a no-deal Brexit.

Drugs: Licensing

Jenny Chapman: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department's is taking to ensure the adequate supply of unlicensed medicines for use in clinical trials in the event that the UK leaves the EU without a deal.

Caroline Dinenage: The Government has issued guidance on preparations to ensure continuity of supply of licensed medicines in the unlikely event of a no-deal. We recognise fully the importance of Investigational Medicinal Products supply and are planning communications to those organisations running clinical trials – life science industries trade associations and member companies, umbrella organisations for research charities and university hospitals, and more widely.

Drugs: Imports

Jenny Chapman: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many (a) licensed and (b) unlicensed medicines are imported to the UK from (a) other (i) EU and (ii) EEA countries and (b) other countries.

Stephen Barclay: There is no central, up-to-date database accessible to the public containing this supply chain information. This is commercial information and held by individual marketing authorisation holders. We are currently working closely with those companies to understand more about their supply routes to the United Kingdom.

Drugs: Imports

Paul Blomfield: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how much freight capacity is used to transport medicines that have been imported to the UK from (a) other EU and EEA countries and (b) the rest of the world.

Paul Blomfield: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many medicines from (a) other EU and EEA countries and (b) the rest of the world are imported to the UK through (i) sea ports (ii) the Channel Tunnel (iii) air freight and (iv) other routes.

Stephen Barclay: The Department does not hold information on the current level of air freight capacity used to import medicines into the United Kingdom or the number of medicines that reach the UK via different routes. We did, however, write to a number of pharmaceutical companies to understand more about their supply chains to allow the Government to effectively plan for a number of different European Union exit scenarios. The Department recognises that through its medicines supply contingency programme for the UK possibly leaving the EU without a deal it is requesting sensitive commercial information from pharmaceutical companies. To reassure participating companies, we have committed to treating all information received confidentially, securely and to using it only for the purposes of the Department’s programme. That means not introducing information about a company or a specific medicine into the public domain.

Drugs

Paul Blomfield: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he has (a) estimated the cost to medicines suppliers of stockpiling medicines for six weeks and (b) held discussions with the Chancellor of the Exchequer on using the public purse to meet that cost.

Paul Blomfield: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what pharmaceutical (a) companies and (b) industry bodies his Department has held discussions with in relation to the potential use of the public purse to meet the costs of medicines stockpiling; and what costs the Government has proposed to cover.

Paul Blomfield: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he has made an assessment of the effect of medicines stockpiling on (a) industry costs, (b) medicines pricing and (c) patient access to medicines.

Stephen Barclay: The Government is considering what support it may provide support to suppliers in respect to stockpiling medicines. The Department recognises that through its medicines supply contingency programme it is requesting sensitive commercial information from pharmaceutical companies. To reassure participating companies, we’ve committed to treating all information received confidentially, securely and to using it only for the purposes of the Department’s programme. That means not introducing information about a company or a specific medicine into the public domain. Prices for branded medicine products are fixed under the Pharmaceutical Price Regulation Scheme. For other generic medicines products there is a competitive market and prices increase and decrease on a regular basis as a result of market forces. We will continue to monitor prices and respond appropriately to ensure maximum value for money on behalf of the taxpayer is achieved. In the unlikely event of a no-deal the aim of the Department’s contingency planning is to ensure patients maintain the same access to medicines as they do at present.

Department of Health and Social Care: Advertising

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how much his Department spent on advertising in 2017.

Caroline Dinenage: For the calendar year 1 January to 31 December 2017, the Department spent £123,984 on advertising.

Cancer: Medical Treatments

Gloria De Piero: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the reasons for (a) the NHS and (b) individual NHS trusts not meeting the target of 85 per cent of patients starting treatment for cancer within 62 days of an urgent GP referral for suspected cancer.

Steve Brine: No formal assessment has been made on the reasons for the National Health Service and individual NHS trusts not meeting the target of 85% of patients starting treatment for cancer within 62 days of an urgent general practitioner (GP) referral for suspected cancer. There has been a continuing rise in demand for cancer services, with urgent GP referrals for cancer rising by over 70,000 compared to last year (2016-17 compared to 2017-18). Achieving the 62-day standard was a key objective in the Government’s mandate to NHS England for 2017-18 and this has been rolled forward into 2018-19. The NHS is committed to achieving the 62-day cancer waiting times standard, and to maintaining performance against the other cancer waiting times standards. It is investing this year in initiatives to recover and maintain the 62-day standard nationally, such as pathway coordinators and timed, standardised pathways.

Health Professions: Vacancies

Gloria De Piero: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many vacancies there are for (a) nurses, (b) junior doctors at each grade and (c) consultants at (i) Sherwood Forest Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust and (ii) Nottingham University Hospitals Trust.

Stephen Barclay: The latest board report of Sherwood Forest Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust states that as at July 2018 there were 196 full time equivalent registered nurse vacancies. This data can be found at the following link: https://www.sfh-tr.nhs.uk/media/4571/enc-13-final-august-trust-board-sof.pdf The vacancies for junior doctors at each grade and consultants at Sherwood Forest Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust were not available. The vacancies for Nottingham University Hospital Trust were not available.

Pharmaceutical Price Regulation Scheme

Ruth George: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the answer of 6 September 2018 to Question 169830 on Pharmaceutical Price Regulation Scheme, what progress he has made on an outline deal for the next Pharmaceutical Price Regulation Scheme.

Steve Brine: The Government is committed to supporting the United Kingdom life sciences industry and ensuring that patients can access cost-effective innovative medicines and technologies at a price the National Health Service can afford. Discussions on a branded medicines voluntary agreement for 2019 onwards are ongoing and are constructive.

Prime Minister

Prime Minister: Correspondence

Diana Johnson: To ask the Prime Minister, when she plans to respond to the 8 June 2018 correspondence by email from The Yorkshire Post on the One North rail campaign.

Mrs Theresa May: I am informed that the Department for Transport spoke to the Yorkshire Post about the contents of this email.

Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs: Ministers

Layla Moran: To ask the Prime Minister, for what reasons she appointed an additional Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State at the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs on 3 September 2018.

Mrs Theresa May: Appointments are made as appropriate. Details of Ministerial responsibilities can be found on the gov.uk website.

Department for Work and Pensions

State Retirement Pensions: Females

Christine Jardine: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment she has made of the efficacy of the Independent Case Examiner  in investigating complaints from women affected by state pension age equalisation measures.

Christine Jardine: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment she has made of the Independent Case Examiner's progress in dealing with complaints made by women affected by the state pension age equalisation measures.

Guy Opperman: Holding answer received on 09 October 2018



The approach of successive governments has been consistent. The Independent Case Examiner is independent. She is appointed under contract to adjudicate on escalated complaints about the DWP, and its contracted service providers, in cases where the complainant has exhausted the relevant internal complaints process and remains dissatisfied. If a complainant is dissatisfied with the outcome of an Independent Case Examiner investigation (or the service provided by the Independent Case Examiner) they can ask their Member of Parliament to escalate their complaint to the Parliamentary and Health Service OmbudsmanMinisters have no role in assessing the efficacy of the Independent Case Examiner in investigating complaints from women affected by State Pension age equalisation measures. The Independent Case Examiner resources are reviewed on an annual basis. Since October 2017, the Independent Case Examiner has experienced increased levels of referrals associated with legislative changes to State Pension age for women. The Independent Case Examiner responded by dedicating a team of three investigation case managers. The Independent Case Examiner aims to complete any investigation within 20 weeks of starting work on a case. The Independent Case Examiner reports related to legislative changes to State Pension age for women that have been concluded to date have been completed within an average of 9.75 weeks. To date, the Independent Case Examiner had not upheld any case specific complaints that the DWP failed to provide adequate and timely information relating to the increase in State Pension age. All final Independent Case Examiner reports explain how the complainant can escalate their complaint to the Parliamentary Ombudsman’s Office. The Parliamentary Health and Service Ombudsman make final decisions on complaints that have not been resolved by UK Government Departments. This was set up in 1967 under the then Labour Government.

Members: Correspondence

Rosie Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if she will make it her policy to require senior personnel in the (a) North Central England office and (b) rest of her Department to sign their correspondence (i) to and (ii) from hon. Members.

Alok Sharma: The Department’s main aim is to provide the best service to hon. Members. To do this correspondence from hon. Members to officials is generally handled at the most appropriate level to provide an appropriate response. Operational expediency and good customer service will mean that the official addressed may not be the official who replies.

Employment and Support Allowance

Marsha De Cordova: To ask the Secretary of State forWork and Pensions, pursuant to the Answer of 6 September 2018 to Question 171381 on Employment and Support Allowance, what estimate she has made of the cost of providing information on how many people flowed off Employment and Support Allowance whose date of death was at the same time, and who had a Work Capability Assessment decision of fit for work between March 2014 and February 2017.

Sarah Newton: The Department for Work and Pensions has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Carer's Allowance

Neil Gray: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, by what data matching process the Government ensures that people in receipt of carers allowance do not exceed earning restrictions.

Sarah Newton: The Department for Work and Pensions has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Carer's Allowance

Neil Gray: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how much resource has been allocated to data matching between the DWP and HMRC to ensure those in receipt of Carers Allowance do not exceed the earning limit for that allowance, in each year since 2008.

Sarah Newton: The Department for Work and Pensions has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Carer's Allowance

Neil Gray: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether she plans to increase the amount carers in receipt of carers allowance are allowed to earn.

Sarah Newton: The Government keeps the Carer’s Allowance (CA) earnings limit under regular review. In April 2018, the CA earnings limit increased from £116 to £120 a week. This 3.4% increase was higher than average earnings growth (Sep 17). In the Economic and fiscal outlook (March 2017) the OBR forecast that average earnings would increase by around 7.5% between 2015 and 2018, whereas we will have increased the CA earnings limit by around 9%. The earnings limit for CA, is a net figure which is the figure once income tax, National Insurance contributions and half of any contributions to an occupational or personal pension are deducted from earnings. In addition, up to half the net earnings figure calculated can be allowed towards the cost of alternative care for the disabled person, or for a child aged under 16, while the carer is at work. CA rules also allow for further deductions from the net earnings figure to be made, including expenses wholly, exclusively and necessarily incurred in the performance of the duties of any employment; e.g. equipment, special clothing and travel between workplaces, though not between home and work. These rules mean that people can earn significantly more than £120 per week and still be eligible for CA.

Carer's Allowance

Neil Gray: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many prosecutions of carers for overpayments due to earning restrictions has his Department sought in each year since 2008.

Sarah Newton: The Department for Work and Pensions has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Employment Schemes: Young People

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what data she collects on the proportion of claimants who complete the Youth Obligation programme after starting it.

Alok Sharma: The information to determine the proportion of claimants who complete the Youth Obligation Support Programme (YOSP) is currently contained within individual claimant records.

Children: Maintenance

Marion Fellows: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to the Answer of 6 September 2018 to Question 169510 on Children: Maintenance; what criteria is used to decide the (a) principal provider of care and (b) proportion of the associated costs of day to day care when that care is shared.

Justin Tomlinson: The principle provider of care for the purpose of child maintenance is the person who has the main day to day care of the child. This person is referred to as the Receiving Parent as they are entitled to receive child maintenance. The Child Maintenance Service will primarily determine who the Receiving Parent is based on eligibility for Child Benefit. Where day to day care is equally shared neither parent is required to pay child maintenance. Child maintenance payments are reduced to take account of the cost of overnight care provided by the parent who pays maintenance. The proportion of the reduction is based on the average number of nights a child stays with the other parent, up to a maximum reduction of 50%.

Amazon: Social Security Benefits

Mr Roger Godsiff: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if her Department will publish statistics on the number of employees of Amazon who have been in receipt of (a) working tax credits and (b) universal credit in each of the last five years for which figures are available; and if he will publish the total amount paid to such employees in (a) working tax credits and (b) universal credits in that same period.

Alok Sharma: The information requested is not readily available and to provide it would incur disproportionate cost.

Universal Credit: Sheffield Brightside and Hillsborough

Gill Furniss: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what estimate she has made of the number of households in the Sheffield, Brightside and Hillsborough constituency that will be in receipt of universal credit by year-end (a) 2018, (b) 2019 and (c) 2020.

Alok Sharma: The information requested is not readily available and to provide it would incur disproportionate cost, as we do not currently forecast at constituency level. The national rollout of Universal Credit will complete in December 2018. During 2019 we will test and refine our processes on a small scale to ensure they are working well before we take on larger volumes from 2020 onwards, and complete the process in 2023. No more than 10,000 claimants will be migrated in 2019.

State Retirement Pensions: Females

Jamie Stone: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to the Answer of 10 September 2018 to Question 169417 on State Retirement Pensions: Females,  for what reason she has not met with representatives of the WASPI campaign to discuss the time taken for complaints raised by women affected by measures taken to equalise the state pension age to be dealt with by her Department.

Guy Opperman: The Independent Case Examiner is independent, and disusses complaints. The ICE is appointed under contract to adjudicate on escalated complaints about the DWP, and its contracted service providers, in cases where the complainant has exhausted the relevant internal complaints process and remains dissatisfied. If a complainant is dissatisfied with the outcome of an Independent Case Examiner investigation (or the service provided by the Independent Case Examiner) they can ask their Member of Parliament to escalate their complaint to the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman. The Independent Case Examiner aims to complete any investigation within 20 weeks of starting work on a case. The Independent Case Examiner reports related to legislative changes to State Pension age for women that have been concluded to date have been completed within an average of 9.75 weeks. To date, the Independent Case Examiner had not upheld any case specific complaints that the DWP failed to provide adequate and timely information relating to the increase in State Pension age. All final Independent Case Examiner reports explain how the complainant can escalate their complaint to the Parliamentary Ombudsman’s Office. The Parliamentary Health and Service Ombudsman make final decisions on complaints that have not been resolved by UK Government Departments. This was set up in 1967.

Universal Credit

Bridget Phillipson: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, with reference to pages 8-11 of the report entitled Rough Justice, published by the Child Poverty Action Group in August 2018, what assessment she has made of the appropriateness of monthly assessments for the Work Allowance element of Universal Credit in circumstances in which a claimant receives their Universal Credit payment on the last working day of each month and receives their monthly pay from their employer twice within a single assessment period.

Alok Sharma: Universal Credit (UC) seeks to take earnings into account in a way that is fair and transparent. The amount of UC paid reflects, as closely as possible, the actual circumstances of a household each monthly assessment period, including any earnings reported by the employer during that assessment period, regardless of when they were paid or which month they relate to. Monthly reporting allows UC to be adjusted on a monthly basis, which ensures that if a claimant's income falls, that they will not have to wait several months for a rise in their UC award.

Universal Credit

Kerry McCarthy: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if she will take steps to ensure that Universal Support is available to claimants in advance of the managed migration stage of the roll-out of Universal Credit.

Alok Sharma: Universal Support has been in place for a number of years. DWP has made funding available to Local Authorities (LAs) to help deliver Universal Support and the Department’s current funding arrangements with LAs will continue until March 2019.Earlier this month, we announced a new partnership with Citizens Advice and Citizens Advice Scotland to deliver a new approach to Universal Support, initially up to March 2020. Our new partnership will ensure that all those who need to make a claim and need extra support can access it.We are considering with stakeholders and partners what additional support might be needed to assist people through the managed migration process.

Universal Credit

Kerry McCarthy: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if she will publish an updated schedule for the next stage of the roll-out of Universal Credit.

Alok Sharma: The schedule for the migration onto Universal Credit has been published and can be found athttps://www.gov.uk/government/publications/universal-credit-transition-to-full-service.Rollout to all Jobcentres will be completed by December 2018. The next stage of the rollout is managed migration. The regulations to enact managed migration will come before Parliament in the autumn and are subject to parliamentary approval. During 2019 we will test and refine our processes on a small scale to ensure they are working well before we take on larger volumes from 2020 onwards, and complete the process in 2023.

Pension Credit

Ben Lake: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many notifications of entitlement to pension credit were confirmed (a) in writing and (b) over the phone in each of the last two years.

Guy Opperman: The DWP provides confirmation of a customer’s Pension Credit entitlement in writing, by post, after a valid claim has been made. The DWP also provides customers with a pre-claim telephone service for those who wish to enquire whether they may be entitled to Pension Credit. This process involves the customer providing the DWP with income and capital information and using an online calculator to initially assess whether entitlement may exist. This information then enables the customer to make an informed decision whether to make a Pension Credit claim to the DWP.

Pension Credit

Ben Lake: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment she has made of the accuracy of the decisions made for pension credit applications by the telephone service managed by Capita plc since that service began.

Guy Opperman: Capita provided a pre-application service on behalf of the DWP for customers who made enquiries about Pension Credit by using an online calculator available on GOV.UK. If the calculator indicated that a customer may be entitled to Pension Credit, Capita signposted the customer to the DWP to make an application.

Universal Credit

Bridget Phillipson: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what estimate her Department has made of the number of people who have applied for universal credit advance loan payments in the last 12 months; and how many of those applications were successful.

Alok Sharma: I refer the hon Member to the reply to Question 162992 on 16 July. Additionally, our latest internal management information data as of July 2018 shows that over 60% of new claims currently receive either a ‘New Claim’ or ‘Benefit Transfer’ advance which shows claimants are getting the support they need.

Universal Credit

Bridget Phillipson: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment her Department has made of the preparedness of digital systems to respond to a potential increase in the volume of universal credit claims during the process of managed migration.

Alok Sharma: Managed migration will begin in 2019, with small-scale testing to ensure that our process works well, before we increase the volume of migration in 2020. The Department is committed to ensuring that Universal Credit Full Service is rolled out safely and responsibly, which includes taking the appropriate time to test and learn to minimise risks in delivery and service. The IT system currently supports and pays over 1 million people each month, increasing in size fivefold over the course of the last year as we have expanded our services across the country. The Universal Credit Full Service system achieved 99.997% availability for claimants in the last year, rivalling the performance of other leading digital services. We are building an agile, adaptable system, fit for the 21st century, to help people to transform their lives through work - while supporting those who cannot work and are most in need.

Universal Credit

Bridget Phillipson: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment her Department has made of the reasons for any late payments of universal credit in the last 12 months.

Alok Sharma: We published statistics on payment timeliness for new claims on 9 July 2018, available at https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/length-of-payment-delays-for-new-claims-to-universal-credit. Analysis of claims to Universal Credit that were due a first payment in April 2018 and received their Universal Credit entitlement late showed: • More than a third had not completed their Claimant Commitment or verified their identity on time.• Half had another form of verification outstanding, for example completing the Habitual Residence Test, verifying capital or submitting self-employed earnings.• In other cases, the claim was assessed as having zero entitlement on the payment due date, however information received later meant that the calculation of entitlement was subsequently revised. For claimants that received part payment of their Universal Credit entitlement on time, the most common reasons for full payment not being made on time were late verification of housing costs and late verification of details of children on the claim.

Housing Benefit

Sarah Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how much housing benefit has been paid to affordable rent tenants in each year since the introduction of the affordable rent tenure in 2010.

Justin Tomlinson: The information requested is not available. Limited information on Housing Benefit paid to Affordable Rent tenants of Local Authorities is available on GOV.UK at https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/housing-benefit-expenditure-and-subsidy-data, but the large majority of Affordable Rent tenancies are with housing associations, and the Department does not hold data which allows the expenditure on these tenancies to be identified.

Motability

Jo Swinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many claimants of personal independence payment were required to return their mobility vehicle prior to receiving a mandatory reconsideration decision; and how many of those claimants were re-awarded the enhanced rate of the mobility component as a result of that reconsideration decision in each of the last three years.

Sarah Newton: The Department for Work and Pensions has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Personal Independence Payment

Marion Fellows: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many Atos personal independence payment assessments have been randomly audited in each year for which information is available.

Sarah Newton: Please find attached numbers as requested. The numbers below relate to audits undertaken in order for the department to measure contractual quality service levels. The providers also conduct internal auditing to assure quality and these figures are not included. With effect from 12 June 2017 Atos Healthcare changed the business name they use for PIP work from Atos to Independent Assessment Services (IAS). The number of IAS PIP assessments randomly audited is available from the commencement of the independent audit process in June 16. -from June 201620172018 to AugustIAS6864115857833DWP Independent Audit MI

Personal Independence Payment: Cancer

Grahame Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if she will exempt people diagnosed with cancer from the three month wait to receive personal independence payments.

Sarah Newton: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 21 May 2018 to Question UIN 144155

Social Security Benefits: Medical Examinations

Marion Fellows: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many audits on health assessments have been undertaken for (a) employment support allowance and (b) personal independence payments in each of the last five years.

Sarah Newton: Please find attached numbers as requested. We’ve interpreted the request as audits for all WCA and PIP assessments given that the request is a) ESA b) personal. The numbers below relate to audits undertaken in order for the department to measure contractual quality service levels. The providers also conduct internal auditing to assure quality and these figures are not included. The number of health assessments randomly audited is available from the commencement of the independent audit process. This was from March 15 for WCA audits (which include ESA, UC and IBR) and from June 16 for PIP audits. -From March 2015201620172018 to AugustWCA7185859086475423DWP Independent Audit MI -from June201620172018 to AugustPIP102891728511705DWP Independent Audit MI

Social Security Benefits: Medical Examinations

Marion Fellows: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment she has made of the adequacy of the independence of audits carried out on health (a) assessments and (b) reports undertaken on claimants of (i) employment and support allowance and (b) personal independence payments.

Sarah Newton: All Healthcare Professionals are subject to on-going audit by our assessment providers to ensure that they deliver high quality assessments. The Department also undertakes independent audit to ensure that the advice provided to the Department’s decision makers is of suitable quality, fully explained and justified.

Social Security Benefits: Medical Examinations

Marion Fellows: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, which organisations are responsible for the independent audits on health (a) assessments and (b) reports on claimants of employment support allowance and personal independence payments.

Sarah Newton: Independent Audit is conducted by the Department and is one of the tools to measure quality for performance management purposes. It is primarily used as a mechanism to determine quality performance against contractual requirements and also provides feedback to the Providers on the quality of audited reports.

Universal Credit: Housing

Mike Kane: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to the Answer of 5 July 2018 to Question 159621 Universal Credit: Housing, how many and what proportion of universal credit claimants with a rent liability received their first payment of housing costs within two months of their date of claim for each month since March 2018.

Alok Sharma: For claims to UC Full Service that were due a first payment in July 2018 (the most recent month for which data is available), and that were entitled to support for housing costs, 95% of claims received support for housing within 2 months of the date of claim. Results for March 2018 to July 2018 are shown in the table below: Month in which first UC payment dueProportion of claims that were entitled to support for housing costs, which receive support for housing within 2 months of the date of claimMarch 201890%April 201890%May 201891%June 201893%July 201895% Notes: These results can change retrospectively as further information is received. There are a number of reasons payments may be delayed including failure by claimants to provide information or attend initial appointments.

Home Office

Crimes of Violence: Young People

Louise Haigh: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what estimate his Department has made of the number of young people who will be reached by the (a) Early Intervention Youth Fund, (b) Community Fund and (c) National County Lines Co-ordination centre as set out in the Serious Violence Strategy 2018.

Victoria Atkins: The Serious Violence Strategy stresses the importance of early intervention to tackle the root causes of serious violence and provide young people with the skills and resilience to lead productive lives free from violence. The strategy includes a range of commitments designed to ensure young people receive the help and support they need.We do not have estimates of the number of young people who will be helped by the Early Intervention Youth Fund, the anti-knife crime Community Fund and the National County Lines Co-ordination Centre. The funding is being targeted though on where it will have the most impact including areas with high crime levels.

National County Lines Coordination Centre

Louise Haigh: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what the timeframe is for the National County Lines Co-ordination Centre to be operational; and how many (a) officers and (b) staff he plans to be employed at the centre when it is fully operational.

Victoria Atkins: The National County Lines Co-ordination Centre has been established jointly by the National Police Chiefs’ Council lead and the National Crime Agency to significantly enhance the response to county lines. A hub within the National Crime Agency has been active since early this year, and the Centre itself became fully operational on 21 September. It has around 40 personnel of which half are police officers.

UK Visas and Immigration: Stoke on Trent

Gareth Snell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what was the consultation process with UK Visa and Immigration prior to the decision to close the immigration reporting centre in Stoke-on-Trent.

Caroline Nokes: The move of reporting away from Stoke-on-Trent was part of a wider programme of work to rationalise our reporting locations to more effectively manage the reporting population.When the decision to move reporting operations in Stoke-on-Trent had been made, stakeholders were informed. These stakeholders included; Staffordshire Police, Asylum Seeker and Refugee Health Team; Social Services; St Marks Hall; Citizens Advice Bureau; SMK Solicitors; Morden Solicitors and Duncan Lewis Solicitors.

Alcoholic Drinks: Minimum Prices

Mary Glindon: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what the implications are for his forthcoming alcohol strategy of Public Health England’s support for minimum unit pricing for alcohol.

Victoria Atkins: The Government is developing a new cross-government alcohol strategy which will set out targeted action to prevent and reduce harmful drinking, support vulnerable people affected by others’ alcohol misuse, improve the pathway into treatment for people with alcohol dependency and professionalise the licensing system.The new strategy will not include a commitment to introduce minimum unit pricing in England at this time, but Public Health England is being commissioned to carry out a scientific review into the impact of minimum unit pricing following its recent introduction in Scotland.

British Nationality: EEA Nationals

Layla Moran: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many applications submitted since 12 November 2015 for British citizenship submitted by EEA nationals have been (a) rejected and (b) refused because the applicant did not provide a permanent residence card or a document certifying permanent residence in each year  for which figures are available.

Caroline Nokes: The available published information on the number of decisions to refuse applications for British citizenship by the main reason for refusal are published in Home Office’s Immigration Statistics, year ending June 2018, Citizenship table cz_09 (Refusals of citizenship by reason) and available from https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/immigration-statistics-year-ending-june-2018/list-of-tables#citizenshipRefusals and rejections on the specific grounds mentioned could only be identified at disproportionate cost.

Visas: USA

Jamie Stone: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether he has made an assessment of the potential merits of reinstating the Retired Persons of Independent Means scheme for applications for UK visas by US citizens who seek to live and work in the UK.

Caroline Nokes: We will set out our proposals for the future immigration system in due course.

Asylum: Housing

Alex Sobel: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether in setting the requirements for asylum accommodation and support contracts he has complied with section 1 of the Public Services (Social Value) Act 2012 and considered (a) how (i) those contracts might improve the economic, social and environmental well-being of the areas in which asylum seekers will be accommodated and (ii) he might act with a view to securing that improvement and (b) whether to undertake a consultation on those matters; and if he will make a statement.

Caroline Nokes: Over the last two years, and in accordance with the Public Services (Social Value) Act 2012, the Home Office has engaged extensively with a wide range of stakeholders and partners to develop the strategy and requirements for the next generation contracts.This engagement has utilised various approaches including 1-2-1s, workshops and a written exercise. Information gleaned from this allowed the project team to build on lessons learned from the existing COMPASS arrangements. Through the Home Office funded Strategic Migration Partnerships, we bring together national, regional and local public sectors to coordinate activity to deal with effects of the immigration system on local economies and communities.

Sergei Skripal and Yulia Skripal

Louise Haigh: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether he will waive the one per cent rule in relation to Special Grant applications from Wiltshire Police relating to costs incurred from the Skripal Poisoning.

Mr Nick Hurd: Given the extraordinary pressures on Wiltshire Police, I can confirm that the usual Special Grant requirement for a force to meet the first one per cent of expenditure has been waived.We have so far provided £6.6m in funding to the Wiltshire Police and Crime Commissioner in respect of the additional cost of operations and investigations into the incidents in Salisbury and Amesbury.

Police: Cameras

Louise Haigh: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what estimate he has made of the potential cost of equipping all police officers with body-worn cameras.

Mr Nick Hurd: The procurement and deployment of Body Worn Video (BWV) is a matter for the Police.As at January 2018, over 65,000 BMV cameras were deployed across police forces in England and Wales, which is expected to increase to nearly 80,000 by the end of 2018.

Corrosive Substances

Louise Haigh: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether his Department plans to provide resources for police forces to deploy corrosive substance testing kits for police officers.

Mr Nick Hurd: The Home Office has commissioned the Defence Science and Technology Laboratory to develop corrosive testing kits for the police in line with the commitment in the Serious Violence Strategy. We will support the roll out of these testing kits once developed.

Police: Equipment

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what estimate he has made of the cost to the public purse of (a) attenuating energy projectiles, (b) discriminating irritant projectiles, (c) riot batons, (d) personal protective equipment for riot control, (e) riot shields and (f) non-porous bags for the storage and transportation of corpses in (i) 2019-20, (ii) 2018-19, (iii) 2017-18 and (iv) 2016-17.

Mr Nick Hurd: The total cost of AEP rounds purchased by UK police forces (and others including the National Crime Agency) in 2016/17 was £1,477,759.20 (Exc VAT); in 2017/18 was £1,831,137.44 (Exc VAT); and for 2018/19 is expected to be 1,885,662.59 (Exc VAT). We do not hold the AEP figures for 2019/20 as yet.Data on the costs of riot batons, personal protective equipment, riot shields and non porous bags is not held centrally as the purchasing of this equipment is a matter for individual police forces.Only less lethal weaponry that has been authorised by the Home Secretary can be used by police forces in England and Wales. Discriminating Irritant Projectiles have not been approved for UK police use as it was decided in 2014 that this Less Lethal Weapon did not meet police operational requirements.

Immigration Bail

Stephanie Peacock: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what recent steps he has taken to ensure that the provisions of immigration bail do not restrict the access to education of adult survivors of modern slavery.

Caroline Nokes: Immigration bail is a valuable tool which enables individuals who are liable to be detained to remain in the community, subject to certain conditions. All individuals on immigration bail will have a minimum of one bail condition, but study is just one of the available options. It is not mandatory to impose a restriction on study; it should only be imposed where appropriate.Guidance for Home Office staff clearly sets out the circumstances in which restricting study as a condition of immigration bail may be appropriate.Any individual on immigration bail who is concerned that a study condition is inappropriate in their particular circumstances should be encouraged to contact the Home Office using the contact details on their Notification of Grant/Variation of Immigration Bail (BAIL 201) notice.https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/offender-management

Nottinghamshire Police: Civilians

Gloria De Piero: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many civilian staff were employed by Nottinghamshire Police in each year since 2010.

Mr Nick Hurd: The Home Office collects and publishes statistics on the number of police staff employed by each police force in England and Wales on a bi-annual basis. These data are published in the ‘Police workforce, England and Wales’ statistical publication.Data on the number police staff employed by Nottinghamshire Police, as at 31 March each year and going back to March 2007, can be found in the Open Data Table accompanying the main release: https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/629362/open-data-table-police-workforce.ods

Animal Experiments

Kerry McCarthy: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the answer on 6 September 2018 to Question 169147 on Animal Experiments, if the Government will introduce legislative proposals to bring regulations for the testing on animals of ingredients used in household products into line with those on ingredients used in cosmetics.

Mr Ben Wallace: The Home Office has published clear guidance on the Household Products testing ban, which is available on Gov.ukThe Household Products Testing ban has been in place since 2015.

Animal Experiments

Kerry McCarthy: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, when he plans to publish his Department's response to the consultation on the review of Section 24 of the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986, published in 2014.

Mr Ben Wallace: The government will issue a response to the consultation on the review of Section 24 of the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986 in due course.

Animal Experiments

Kerry McCarthy: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what guidance his Department has issued to universities engaged animal testing on the implementation of the principles of the 3Rs, Replacement, Reduction and Refinement.

Mr Ben Wallace: The Home Office has published guidance on the Operation of the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986. The guidance includes information on the implementation of the 3Rs and is available at https://www.gov.uk/guidance/research-and-testing-using-animals#animals-in-science-regulation-unit-asru-guidance.The Home Office regulator for the use of animals in science has recently signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the NC3Rs. The Memorandum of Understanding is published and available at:https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/734630/establishment-licence-holder-newsletter-august-2018.pdf

Treasury

Business: Tax Yields

Sir Graham Brady: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what estimate he has made of the tax revenue that has accrued to the public purse from businesses with (a) 0-9 employees, (b) 10-49 employees and (c) a turnover of £1 million or less.

Mel Stride: I refer the hon member to the answer that I gave on 9 October 2018 to PQ 173981 and PQ 173982. It is not possible to estimate the tax revenue that has accrued to the public purse from businesses with (a) 0-9 employees, (b) 10-49 employees and (c) a turnover of £1 million or less as the information is not readily available but could be provided only at disproportionate cost. It is possible to identify tax liabilities for businesses with a turnover of £1 million or less for corporation tax and value added tax. We estimate corporation tax liabilities for 2016-17 was £50 billion of which around £12 billion (24%) was contributed by companies with turnover of £1 million or less. We estimate Home VAT liabilities for 2016-17 was £100 billion of which around £16 billion (16%) was contributed by companies with a turnover of £1 million or less.

Business: Tax Yields

Sir Graham Brady: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what estimate he has made of the (a) overall amount and (b) proportion of tax revenue from the contributions of businesses with 0-49 employees in terms of (i) employer national insurance contributions, (ii) corporation tax, (iii) value added tax and (iv) business rates in the most recent year for which information is available.

Mel Stride: I refer the hon member to the answer that I gave on 9 October 2018 to PQ 173981 and PQ 173982. It is not possible to estimate the (a) overall amount and (b) proportion of tax revenue from the contributions of businesses with 0-49 employees in terms of (i) employer national insurance contributions, (iii) value added tax and (iv) business rates as the information is not readily available but could be provided only at disproportionate cost. HMRC does not collect business rates. It is possible to identify tax liabilities for businesses with 0-49 employees for corporation tax. We estimate corporation tax liabilities for 2016-17 were £50 billion, of which around £26 billion (52%) was contributed by companies with 0-49 employees. The Ministry of Housing, Communities & Local Government statistics on national non-domestics rates are available using the following link below. Business rates collected is aggregated data by local authority and not by individual business size. https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/national-non-domestic-rates-collected-by-councils-in-england-forecast-for-2018-to-2019

Electronic Commerce: Taxation

Mr Roger Godsiff: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment he has made of the merits of requiring online retailers to pay the same level of tax as high-street retailers.

Mel Stride: Major business taxes apply in the same way to online and high-street retailers. The government recognises business rates can be a high fixed cost for some retailers with a large high-street presence, and has acted to introduce reforms and reductions to rates worth £10 billion by 2023. The government recognises that the digital economy poses a challenge to the tax system and has been considering how best to address this through international and domestic reforms.

Imports: VAT

Theresa Villiers: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether he plans to retain the principle in the VAT system that businesses do not need to pay VAT upfront on imports from EU Member States after the UK leaves the EU.

Mel Stride: The Government’s aim is to keep VAT processes as close as possible to what they are now.The Government recognises the importance of VAT accounting treatment to business, and is exploring options to mitigate any cash-flow impacts for business as a result of potential changes following EU exit. The Government therefore confirmed in the VAT for business if there’s no Brexit deal technical notice that, if the UK leaves the EU without an agreement, the Government will introduce postponed accounting for import VAT on goods brought into the UK.

Imports: VAT

Theresa Villiers: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether the Government is seeking continued access for the UK to the VAT Information Exchange System after the UK leaves the EU.

Mel Stride: The Government’s aim is to keep VAT processes as close as possible to what they are now. This will provide the best continuity and most certainty for businesses and individuals. The Government supports administrative cooperation and exchange of information between countries, to help combat tax avoidance and evasion. The Government also supports the use of technology to underpin this and to simplify business burdens more generally. The Taxation (Cross-border Trade) Act 2018 therefore provides the ability to enable continued access to, or to adapt, these procedures and IT systems.

Housing Associations: Finance

Jonathan Edwards: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, with reference to the announcement, PM to address the National Housing Federation Summit, made by the Prime Minister on 19 September 2018, whether the £2 billion in additional funding for housing associations will come from existing  budgets in his Department.

Elizabeth Truss: These funds will not come from existing budgets at the Ministry for Housing, Communities and Local Government. This is new funding available from 2022, and is in addition to our current £9bn Affordable Homes Programme which runs until March 2022.

Tobacco: Smuggling

Martyn Day: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to the Answer of 6 September 2018 to Question 169565 on tobacco: smuggling, what representations his Department has received from the tobacco industry on delivery of a UK tobacco product track and trace system; and what steps his Department is taking to ensure the UK's final track and trace system will be compliant with the WHO FCTC Protocol to Eliminate Illicit Trade in Tobacco Products requirement for parties not to delegate any of their obligations to the tobacco industry.

Robert Jenrick: HM Revenue & Customs has received a number of representations from the tobacco industry and others about the implementation of a track and trace system. As I set out in my previous answer, the government is committed to meeting the requirements for independence from the tobacco industry as per Article 8 of the WHO FCTC Protocol to Eliminate the Illicit Trade in Tobacco Products. The track and trace system will be implemented under the EU Tobacco Products Directive. The implementing legislation for the Directive specifies strict and comprehensive criteria by which independence from the tobacco industry is determined. Providers of the track and trace system will need to demonstrate to HM Revenue & Customs that they satisfy this criteria both before and during the period they provide the services required as a condition of holding the respective contracts. Companies providing track and trace data repositories for the tobacco industry must also be approved as independent of the tobacco industry by the European Commission.

Tobacco: Smuggling

Martyn Day: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to the Answer of 6 September 2018 to Question 169565 on tobacco: smuggling, when HMRC plans to make a decision on security features for UK tobacco packaging as required by the EU Tobacco Products Directive; and how new track and trace requirements will be integrated with requirements for standardised tobacco packaging.

Robert Jenrick: On 20 September, HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) published the security features that will be required on all unit packs of cigarettes and hand rolling tobacco manufactured in, or imported into the UK, under the Tobacco Products Directive. A tendering exercise for the ID issuer is currently underway and the full technical details of the track and trace requirements will be finalised once the ID issuer is in place. Compatibility with the requirements for standardised tobacco packaging is a key consideration in this work.

Offshore Industry: Taxation

Clive Lewis: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what estimate his Department has made of the effect on the public purse of Transferable Tax History over the next 10 years.

Clive Lewis: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what consultation his Department undertook on the potential effects of Transferable Tax History.

Clive Lewis: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether he has carried out a distributional analysis in relation to Transferable Tax History; and if he will make a statement.

Robert Jenrick: Transferable tax history (TTH) will allow companies selling North Sea oil and gas fields to transfer some of their tax payment history to the buyers of those fields. The buyers will then be able to set the costs of decommissioning the fields at the end of their lives against the transferred history, to the extent that the costs exceeds the profits made on the transferred assets. The Government held a public consultation on the discussion paper entitled “Tax issues for late-life oil and gas” from 20 March to 30 June 2017. 7 of the 9 questions in this discussion paper concerned TTH. Subsequently it was announced at Autumn Budget 2017 that TTH would be available for transactions that received Oil and Gas Authority approval on or after 1 November 2018. The draft TTH legislation was published for public consultation as part of the draft Finance Bill 2018-19 on 6 July 2018. This further technical consultation closed on 31 August 2018. The Exchequer and economic impacts of Transferable Tax History are set out in the published tax information and impact note on the gov.uk website: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/oil-and-gas-taxation-transferable-tax-history-and-retention-of-decommissioning-expenditure/oil-and-gas-taxation-transferable-tax-history-and-retention-of-decommissioning-expenditure

Taxis: Excise Duties

Clive Lewis: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will place in the Library a copy of the distributional analysis his Department has carried out on exempting zero emission capable taxis from the vehicle excise duty supplement for expensive cars.

Robert Jenrick: On publication of the draft Finance Bill 2018-19, the government published a tax impact and information note (TIIN) relating to the exemption of purpose-built zero emission capable taxis from the VED supplement. The TIIN is available at: www.gov.uk/government/publications/exempt-zero-emission-capable-taxis-from-vehicle-excise-duty-expensive-car-supplement/exempting-zero-emission-capable-taxis-from-the-vehicle-excise-duty-expensive-car-supplement

Electric Vehicles: Charging Points

Clive Lewis: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what estimate he has made of the number of (a) people and (b) businesses that will benefit from the workplace electric vehicle charging benefit-in-kind exemption.

Robert Jenrick: The Government’s estimate of the impacts from the workplace electric vehicle charging benefit-in-kind exemption was set out in the policy paper published on the 6th of July “Workplace charging for all-electric and plug-in hybrid vehicles”. (https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/workplace-charging-for-all-electric-and-plug-in-hybrid-vehicles/workplace-charging-for-all-electric-and-plug-in-hybrid-vehicles). This change is expected to affect a small number of those individuals who use an electric/plug-in hybrid vehicle which are not subject to the car or van benefit charge and impact on a small number of businesses.

Teachers: Pensions

Stephanie Peacock: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what estimate he has made of the cost to schools of increasing the employer contribution to the Teachers’ Pension Scheme in each of the next five fiscal years; and what plans he has to provide additional funding to the Department for Education to meet that cost.

Elizabeth Truss: We undertake valuations of the public service pension schemes every four years. This is the first time that a full assessment of the pension schemes has been undertaken since the government introduced reformed schemes in 2015. Early indications are that the amount employers pay towards the schemes will need to increase. This is because of proposed changes to the discount rate, which is used to assess the current cost of future payments from the schemes, to reflect the Office for Budget Responsibility’s long-term growth forecasts. Further details will be known later this year.Some increase in costs was anticipated at Budget 16, which departments and the devolved administrations will need to meet in full. Treasury will be supporting departments with any unforeseen costs for 2019/20. Further discussions will be taken forward as part of the Spending Review.

Company Cars: Taxation

Dr David Drew: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether he has made an assessment of the potential merits of bringing forward the 2 per cent company car BiK rate to incentivise (a) fleet operators and (b) consumers to buy electric vehicles.

Robert Jenrick: From 2020/21, the government will be introducing eleven new company car tax bands for ultra-low emission vehicles (ULEVs). These changes were announced at Autumn Statement 2016.To provide certainty of the future tax liability for company car employers and employees, the government aims to announce the company car tax rates three years in advance of implementation.

Taxation: Self-assessment

Chris Ruane: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what discussion he has had with his counterparts in (a) ECOFIN nations, (b) the G7 nations and (c) any other nations on the merits of an internationally coordinated digital tax.

Mel Stride: The Government has been at the forefront of international efforts to update international tax rules for the digital economy. The Government is continuing to engage in negotiations within the EU on the European Commission’s proposal for a Digital Services Tax. It also continues to discuss reforms to the international tax framework for digital businesses with other countries, including within the G7.

Unemployment

Ian Austin: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that people are not better off out of work than in work.

Elizabeth Truss: Work is the best route out of poverty and the government is ensuring that work always pays. Increases in the National Living Wage (NLW) have handed full-time minimum wage workers a pay rise of over £2,000 since the introduction of the NLW, and changes to the personal allowance will see 1.2m individuals taken out of income tax altogether by 2018-19 (compared to 2015-16). We have also made sure the welfare system is fairer and rewards work. Universal Credit (UC) replaces six benefits with one and applies a single taper to claimants’ benefit awards, removing the poor incentives of the old system to ensure that it always pays more to be in work than out of work. The Government’s childcare offer is also ensuring parents are supported into work. UC provides support for childcare costs worth up to £1108 per month for two or more children. Eligible working families in England are also entitled to 30 hours free childcare for three and four-year olds, worth up to £5000 per year. A lone parent only has to earn around £6,500 a year to be able to access this entitlement and a couple just over £13,000, making work pay for parents.

Capital Gains Tax

Anneliese Dodds: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what estimate his Department has made of the potential loss of revenue to the public purse of deferred payment of capital gains tax for trusts ceasing to be UK resident or non-UK resident individuals who trade through a UK branch or agency as proposed in Clause 36 of the draft Finance Bill.

Mel Stride: The estimate of the loss of revenue from deferred payment of capital gains tax for trusts ceasing to be UK resident or non-UK resident individuals who trade through a UK branch or agency is set out in the policy paper published on 6th July 2018 which is available here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/deferral-of-exit-charge-payments-for-capital-gains-tax/deferral-of-payment-of-exit-charges-for-capital-gains-tax It is estimated that the impact of this measure will be negligible.

Tax Avoidance: EU Law

Anneliese Dodds: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what estimate his Department has made of the level of revenue accrued to the public purse as a result of  the implementation of Article 5 of the EU Anti Tax Avoidance Directive (Directive (EU) 2016/1164 of the European Parliament.

Mel Stride: The level of revenue accrued to the public purse as a result of the implementation of Article 5 of the EU Anti-Tax Avoidance Directive (Directive (EU) 2016/1164 of the European Parliament) is expected to be negligible. The UK already has comprehensive exit taxation rules, and the changes necessary to implement the directive are relatively minor and primarily of an administrative nature. Article 5 of the Anti-Tax Avoidance Directive will be implemented as a budget measure in the upcoming Finance Bill. More information can be found in the Tax Information and Impact Note published on 6 July 2018: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/changes-to-the-corporation-tax-exit-charges

Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport

Youth Organisations

Cat Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, with reference to the recent report by London Youth entitled A space of our own: The role and value of youth organisations in strengthening communities, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that youth organisations are recognised as valuable parts of social infrastructure and are supported to strengthen communities.

Cat Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, with reference to the recent London Youth report entitled A space of our own: The role and value of youth organisations in strengthening communities, what steps his Department is taking to support youth organisations to protect high quality physical spaces for young people.

Tracey Crouch: Government recognises the value of spaces for young people; a place of trust and safety, that provides high quality information, advice and guidance alongside positive activities that can help young people to develop skills, improve wellbeing and participate in their communities. Local authorities are primarily responsible for allocating public funding to youth services in their area. In addition, the Government is investing up to £40 million (in partnership with the Big Lottery Fund) in the Youth Investment Fund, which is supporting 90 youth organisations around the country to create and expand open access youth projects, and is expected to benefit up to 300,000 young people. This is part of a wider range of Government investment in services and opportunities for young people such as the #iwill fund and National Citizen Service.

Youth Organisations: Finance

Cat Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what steps his Department is taking to help ensure adequate funding for youth organisations.

Tracey Crouch: Local authorities are responsible for allocating public funding to youth services in their area. We believe they are best placed to know what is required in their communities. Alongside this, we are investing in youth organisations in a number of ways including:National Citizen Service (over £1bn has been allocated to NCS between 15/16 and 19/20) which is delivered via a supply chain network of over 100 organisations, including many youth organisations;Creating a new, independent organisation that will administer a £90m fund using money from dormant accounts to address barriers to employment for young people, in areas of significant racial disparity. We have released £1.2m of this funding [today] to boost the capacity of vital grass-roots youth organisations working with young people in three areas of the country who are not in education, employment or training;Up to £80 million (in partnership with Big Lottery Fund) through the Youth Investment and #iwill Funds in voluntary and community organisations that work with young people; andThe £2m Building Connections Fund, in partnership with the Co-op Foundation, which is available to youth organisations helping to support young people to avoid long-term loneliness.

5G

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what plans he has for the planning system to support deployment of 5G mobile services; and if he will make a statement.

Margot James: We will continue to work with the mobile sector to understand where the current planning regime could further support the deployment of digital infrastructure, including 5G. We are in discussions with the industry regarding further reforms that could support deployment of 5G mobile services which warrant changes to planning. If a clear case for change can be made, we will work swiftly to consider the proposals and consult more widely on appropriate reforms.

Mobile Phones: Aerials

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, if he will make it his policy to reform the Electronic Communications Code to (a) grant mobile network operators greater right of access to mast sites and (b) encourage mast site sharing.

Margot James: The Electronic Communications Code (ECC) has already been recently reformed as part of the Digital Economy Act 2017 to make it easier and cheaper for operators to deploy communications infrastructure. The new Code became law on 28 December 2017. My Department will continue to work with stakeholders, including representatives from industry, landowners, representative bodies and Ofcom, to inform the implementation of the new Code. We will monitor developments carefully and, as outlined in the Future Telecoms Infrastructure Review, will consider a formal review of the impact of the ECC reforms in 2019.

Mobile Phones: Aerials

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what comparative assessment he has made of the appropriateness of the maximum permissible height of mobile masts in the UK and other European countries.

Margot James: All proposals for new mobile phone masts require planning permission, either through nationally set permitted development rights or through a planning application to the local planning authority. In England mobile phone operators are able to install new ground-based masts of up to 25 metres in non-protected areas, and up to 20 metres in protected areas, under permitted development rights. For higher ground based masts a full application for planning permission will be required.

Mobile Phones: Fees and Charges

Mary Glindon: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what steps he is taking to prevent mobile phone companies from continuing to charge customers for the cost of a handset after those costs have been recovered through the conclusion of a fixed-term contract; and if he will make a statement.

Gill Furniss: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what steps his Department is taking to stop the practice of customers continuing to be charged for the cost of their mobile handset after the cost of that handset has been paid off.

Margot James: The 2017 Conservative Manifesto committed to make billing for telecoms consumers fairer and easier to understand, including making it clear when consumers have paid off the cost of their mobile handset. On 26 September 2018, Ofcom published two proposals to ensure fairer, more transparent prices for mobile customers who pay for their handsets and airtime within the same contract. First, achieving greater transparency by, for example, requiring mobile firms to break down the cost of the different parts of the bundled mobile package a customer is purchasing. Second, a requirement for providers to introduce fairer tariffs, for example moving consumers of bundled mobile phone packages to SIM only contracts, at the end of the minimum contract period. The consultation closes on 7 November 2018 and further details can be viewed at:https://www.ofcom.org.uk/consultations-and-statements/category-2/consumers-communications-markets-mobile-handsets.

Broadband

Ian Murray: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment he has made of the differences in (a) speed and (b) reliability of (i) FTTC and (ii) FTTP broadband connections.

Ian Murray: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, pursuant to the Answer of 10 September 2018 to Question 167873 on Broadband: Advertising, what steps he is taking to ensure consumers have clear, concise and accurate information to make an informed choice on the differences between (a) FTTC and (b) FTTP broadband.

Ian Murray: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what steps he is taking to prevent internet service providers from advertising using the term fibre when their network uses copper wiring.

Margot James: Ofcom’s Connected Nations report states that full fibre networks (FTTP connections) can provide a better quality of broadband than part-fibre connections, such as FTTC. FTTP offers more stable performance, especially at peak times, and can therefore more easily meet advertised headline speeds. Ofcom also states that, compared to copper-based networks (like standard broadband and FTTC connections), full fibre networks are more reliable and resilient and suffer five times fewer faults. Full fibre can also deliver both download and upload speeds of 1Gbps, making it significantly faster than existing services delivered over part-copper networks. The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) reviewed the use of the term ‘fibre’ to describe part-fibre and full-fibre broadband. As part of its decision in November 2017, it concluded that the term 'fibre' is unlikely to mislead consumers as currently used in the advertising of part-fibre broadband services. In June, the Administrative Court granted CityFibre permission to proceed with its Judicial Review of the ASA's decision. The ASA also recognised there are differences between broadband services, and said that: Adverts should not describe non-fibre services as ‘fibre’Adverts should make performance claims for ‘fibre’ services that are appropriate for the type of technology delivering that service, and should hold evidence to substantiate the specific claims madeSpecifically, adverts should refer to speed in a manner that is appropriate for the technology, including by having due regard to the ASA’s guidance on numerical speed claimsAdverts should not state or imply a service is the most technologically advanced on the market if it is a part-fibre service.

D-Day Landings: Anniversaries

Stephen Morgan: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what funds his Department plans to allocate to Portsmouth's commemoration of the 75th anniversary of the D-Day landings.

Michael Ellis: I refer the Honourable member to the response to PQ 176627 answered by Rt Hon Mark Lancaster, Minister of State for Defence.

Video Games: Design

Jo Stevens: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what estimate his Department has made of the number of people employed in the video game design sector that earn over £50,000 per annum.

Margot James: The Office for National Statistics (ONS) compiles data on employee earnings through the Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings (ASHE) which is the most detailed and comprehensive source of earnings information in the UK. This can be found at:https://www.ons.gov.uk/employmentandlabourmarket/peopleinwork/earningsandworkinghours.

Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy

Companies: Location

Tom Brake: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, how many businesses have informed his Department that they will relocate their business operations outside the UK in the event that the UK leaves the EU without a deal.

Kelly Tolhurst: Business decisions on investment reflect a range of factors. The department is aware through regular engagement with businesses that they are concerned to ensure that future trade with the European Union remains as frictionless as possible; and that many have contingency arrangements in the unlikely event of no deal, supported by the Technical Notices that the UK Government has published.

Radioactive Materials

Tim Farron: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what plans his Department has to establish a State System of Accounting and Control for Nuclear Material and then negotiate a formal agreement with Euratom after the UK leaves the EU.

Richard Harrington: As the White Paper on the UK’s Future Relationship with the EU makes clear, the UK is seeking a close association with Euratom through a broad and comprehensive Nuclear Cooperation Agreement between the UK and Euratom. The Government has also been clear that, irrespective of the outcome of negotiations, it will take legal responsibility for the application of nuclear safeguards in the UK once Euratom arrangements no longer apply. The new regime will be implemented by the Office for Nuclear Regulation (ONR). Parliament has passed the Nuclear Safeguards Act 2018 which provides the legal framework for setting up a domestic nuclear safeguards regime. Using these new powers, the Government intends to make the Nuclear Safeguards Regulations this year, which set out the proposed detail of the regime, following a public consultation which ran from July to September. The ONR will implement a UK State System for Accounting for and Control of Nuclear Material (SSAC) as part of the new domestic regime. The ONR is working to ensure it will have in place by 29 March 2019 the IT systems and safeguards inspectors needed to operate the UK SSAC, meet international standards and to build, over time, to equivalent effectiveness and coverage to Euratom.

Limited Liability: Public Consultation

Alison Thewliss: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, with reference to his Department's consultation entitled Limited partnerships: reform of limited partnership law, published on 30 April 2018, when his Department plans to publish a response to that consultation.

Kelly Tolhurst: The consultation closed on 23rd July 2018. We intend to publish the Government’s response in due course.

Plutonium

Drew Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, how much plutonium nuclear waste has been imported into the UK in each of the last 10 years; and from which countries that waste was imported.

Richard Harrington: The UK does not import any material classified as “plutonium nuclear waste”.

Plutonium

Drew Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, how much plutonium nuclear waste has been exported from the UK in each of the 10 years; and to which countries that waste was exported.

Richard Harrington: The UK has not exported any material classified as plutonium nuclear waste. The UK returns Higher Activity Wastes produced from reprocessing of overseas owned spent fuel to its country of origin. These wastes contain only trace quantities of plutonium. The table below sets out exports over the last 10 years. YearCountry waste exported toNumber of containers2010Netherlands282010Japan282011Japan762013Japan282014japan1322015Japan1242015Switzerland842016Japan1322016Switzerland112

Plutonium

Drew Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, how much plutonium nuclear waste has been reprocessed in the UK in each of the last 10 years; and how much of that reprocessing was done on behalf of other countries.

Richard Harrington: Spent nuclear fuel was imported into the UK, under commercial agreements, for reprocessing in the THORP plant at Sellafield. Nuclear fuel reprocessing separates spent nuclear fuel into uranium, plutonium and highly active waste products. Separated plutonium and uranium are not categorised as nuclear waste. Highly active waste products contain only trace amounts of plutonium. The amounts of overseas origin spent fuels reprocessed in THORP each year for the last ten years are shown in the table below.  YEARAmount of overseas origin fuel reprocessed (tonnes)Total fuel reprocessed (tonnes)2008231162009622172010164349201116343020126222820138634520145037720151547520165541220179264

Plutonium

Drew Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, how much plutonium nuclear waste has been stored in the UK in each of the last 10 years; and how much of that storing was done on behalf of other countries.

Richard Harrington: Nuclear fuel reprocessing separates spent nuclear fuel into uranium, plutonium and highly active waste products. Separated plutonium and uranium are not categorised as nuclear waste. Highly active waste products contain only trace amounts of plutonium. Each year the Office for Nuclear Regulation publishes annual figures for holdings of civil unirradiated plutonium, including those owned by foreign bodies, on their website. The most recent figure is of 31 December 2016. (http://www.onr.org.uk/safeguards/civilplut16.htm)

Plutonium

Drew Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what discussions he has had with Cabinet colleagues on the (a) import and (b) export of plutonium nuclear waste; and what discussions he has had with Cabinet colleagues on the (i) sorting and (ii) processing of nuclear waste on behalf of other countries.

Richard Harrington: No discussions have taken place with Cabinet colleagues on the (a) import and (ii) export of plutonium nuclear waste on behalf of other countries. No discussions have taken place with Cabinet colleagues on the (i) sorting and (ii) processing of nuclear waste on behalf of other countries.

Radioactive Waste: Japan

Drew Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what discussions he has had with the Prime Minister of Japan during his recent visit to that country on the import, storage and processing of Japanese plutonium nuclear waste in the UK.

Richard Harrington: The issue of importing, storing and processing Japanese nuclear material in the UK was not discussed during this visit.

Solar Power: Feed-in Tariffs

Alex Sobel: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, if he will reconsider proposals to end the export tariff for new solar installations from April 2019.

Claire Perry: We are carefully considering responses received to the consultation on the closure of the Feed-In Tariffs scheme. A Government response will be published in due course.

Gratuities

Stephanie Peacock: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what legislative steps he intends to take on tips, gratuities, cover and service charges; and if he will he make a statement.

Kelly Tolhurst: On 1 October 2018, the Government announced its intention to legislate to ban employers from making deductions from tips. This will ensure a better deal for workers, but also for consumers who will have the confidence that their tips go to workers as they intended. These new rules will require primary legislation and will be introduced in due course.

Parental Leave and Parental Pay

Jo Swinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, when he plans to publish the consultation document on the potential requirement for employers with more than 250 staff to publish parental leave and pay policies.

Kelly Tolhurst: We will consult in due course.

Retail Trade: Rural Areas

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what steps his Department is taking to support the financial sustainability of rural convenience stores.

Kelly Tolhurst: This Government recognises that local convenience stores are a vital part of both our economy and our society, often serving as so much more than a shop, but as a hub for local people and a voice in our communities. We work closely with the Association of Convenience Stores (ACS) to understand the specific needs of rural convenience stores. ACS contribute through a number of forums including the Retail Sector Council, National Retail Crime Steering Group and the Future High Street Forum. We are committed to supporting small businesses across the country and are working to reduce the cost of doing business; cutting corporation tax to 19%, linking business rate increases to the Consumer Price Index (CPI) 2 years earlier than planned and exempting small and micro businesses from regulations where possible. Business rates are devolved and information on business rates relief in Wales can be found on the Business Wales website: https://businesswales.gov.wales/business-rates-relief-in-wales Programmes operated by the Government-owned British Business Bank are currently supporting over £5.2 billion of finance to nearly 75,000 smaller businesses in the UK. In England, our network of 38 Growth Hubs bring together public and private sector partners to deliver business support making it easy for businesses to access the help and advice they need. Business Support is a devolved matter and Business Wales website also provides business support to people starting, running and growing a business in Wales. The Business Wales Helpline is 0300 060 3000.

Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government

Tenancy Deposit Schemes

Matt Western: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of tenants' rights to compensation from a landlord who has not protected their deposit in compliance with deposit protection legislation.

Mrs Heather Wheeler: Under the tenancy deposit protection legislation introduced in the Housing Act 2004, all landlords letting on assured shorthold tenancies are required to protect their tenants' deposits in a government-approved scheme within 30 days of taking the deposit.If a landlord fails to protect the deposit they cannot evict the tenant using a section 21 notice. In addition, the tenant may initiate legal action and if the court finds that the landlord has not complied with the legislation, it must order the landlord to pay the applicant a sum of money between one and three times the amount of the deposit.

Travellers: Caravan Sites

Vernon Coaker: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, when he plans to respond to the consultation on powers for dealing with unauthorised development and encampments; and if he will make a statement.

Kit Malthouse: My Department is working closely with the Home Office and Ministry of Justice, as we carefully consider all the consultation responses we received. We will provide a formal response to the consultation in due course.

Mobile Homes: Liquefied Petroleum Gas

Mr Laurence Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps his Department is taking to work with the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy to investigate how the LPG market can be made to work better on park home sites; and if he will make a statement.

Kit Malthouse: In 2014, the Government banned rules which compelled park home residents to buy Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) supplied by the site owner. The Department continues to work with BEIS and across Government on a range of issues facing park home residents.

UK Shared Prosperity Fund

Graham P Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, how much money has been allocated for the establishment of the UK Shared Prosperity Fund.

Jake Berry: We continue to work on the design of the UK Shared Prosperity Fund (UKSPF) and decisions on the operation and allocation of the Fund will be made as part of the 2019 Spending Review.

Supported Housing: Mental Illness

Grahame Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps the Government is taking to ensure that the social housing system has adequate funding to support people with mental health problems.

Mrs Heather Wheeler: The Social Housing Green Paper recognises that many landlords play a role that goes beyond their key responsibilities, which includes providing signposting to vital services such as mental health services. Through the Green Paper, we are seeking to gather evidence on the impact of the important role that many social landlords are playing.Social housing and more widely, supported housing provides a vital service for vulnerable people, including people with mental health issues. Safeguarding provision and supply of appropriate supported accommodation is a priority for my Department and we will continue to provide capital grant funding to promote new supply of supported housing. Our recent announcement confirming that funding for all supported housing will stay in Housing Benefit, will also give confidence to the sector to continue to invest in new supply. We are also reviewing oversight arrangements for all supported housing. As a Government, we are investing record levels in mental health, spending £11.98 billion in 2017/18.

Sleeping Rough

John Healey: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, if he will place in the Library any correspondence in the last year between his Department and local authorities on the collection and reporting of local rough sleeping data.

James Brokenshire: The latest statistics on homelessness and rough sleeping in England are published and can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/homelessness-statisticsThis includes statistics for the annual rough sleeping counts and estimates. In 2010 we overhauled the methodology for counting the number of people sleeping rough, so every council now has to report the scale of the problem in their area. Prior to 2010 figures under-estimated the number as they did not require all local authorities to submit a return. Guidance on this system is published and can be found at:https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/6009/1713784.pdfThe rough sleeping counts and estimates are single night snapshots of the number of people sleeping rough in local authority areas. It is up to local authorities to decide the best way of coming to a robust figure that reflects the number of people sleeping rough. The process for preparing for this is run by Homeless Link, which are funded by my Department to provide independent verification, validation, and guidance to local authorities. Homeless Link verify all street counts, liaising with the Count Coordinator to check that the guidance has been followed in the planning of the count and conduct detailed verification of estimates. Correspondence is therefore primarily between Homeless Link and local authorities. The guidance they provide is published online and is available at:https://www.homeless.org.uk/our-work/resources/counts-and-estimates-evaluating-extent-of-rough-sleepingThis Government is clear that no one should have to sleep rough. As part of our recently published rough sleeping strategy we have also committed to establish data pilots by summer 2019 to develop and test an outcomes framework for homelessness and rough sleeping.

Ministry of Defence

Tornado Aircraft: Accidents

Martin Docherty-Hughes: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to the Answer of 4 July 2018 to Question 158760 on Tornado aircraft: accidents, whether the GQ 5000 parachute was fitted as part of modification 2198 in 2007 and not 2010 as indicated in that answer.

Mr Tobias Ellwood: Modification 02198B included the introduction of the GQ5000 parachute. This was a phased process, with implementation starting in 2007.

East of England Ambulance Service NHS Trust: Military Aid

Justin Madders: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what representations he has received from the East of England Ambulance Service on the potential use of military personnel to cover staff shortages in winter 2018-19.

Mark Lancaster: Ministry of Defence Joint Regional Liaison Officers (JRLOs) advise civil authorities in their region on the principles of Military Aid to the Civil Authorities (MACA). The East of England JRLO has provided the East of England Ambulance Service (EEAS) with general information on the MACA process however EEAS have, at this time, made no requests of Defence in relation to the potential use of military personnel to cover staff shortages in winter 2018-19.

Type 23 Frigates

Nia Griffith: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many days each Type 23 frigate has spent at sea in each year since those ships came into service.

Stuart Andrew: The information requested will take time to collate and I will write to the hon. Member when it is available.

Armed Forces: Food

Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what recent progress his Department has made in making available surplus operational ration packs to organisations supporting people who are homeless.

Mr Tobias Ellwood: The Ministry of Defence is reviewing the current disposal process for operational ration packs to reduce wastage, and to investigate whether elements from out of date packs could be donated.

Armed Forces: Deployment

Nia Griffith: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to his Answer of 11 September 2018 to Question 169198 on Armed Forces: Deployment, if he will match the operation to the relevant country or countries.

Mark Lancaster: The majority of operations listed cover more than one country, as such the information requested has been provided on a regional basis. In addition, the precise location of some operations would be withheld for reasons of operational security.Asia: FAIRFIELD, HALLEX, INVOKER, PANAKA, TORALBroader Middle East: CROSSWAYS, KIPION, MONOGRAM, SHADEREurope: CABRIT, ELGIN, LITTEN, ORBITAL, TOSCANorth Africa: BRANTA, TAILPIN, TRAMALSouth America: RECOMPOSESub Saharan Africa: BACKWELL, CATAN, METRO, MODEST, PERCIVAL, MONOGRAM, NEWCOMBE, PRAISER, PRESIDIUM, TANGHAM, TRENTON, TURUS, VOGUL

Defence: Space Technology

Nia Griffith: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, when his Department plans to publish the Defence Space Strategy.

Stuart Andrew: By the end of this year.

D-Day Landings: Anniversaries

Stephen Morgan: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what funds his Department plans to allocate to Portsmouth's commemoration of the 75th anniversary of the D-Day landings.

Mark Lancaster: A range of major events will take place around Portsmouth and Normandy next June to mark 75 years since the D-Day landings. Although exact details of the events are yet to be confirmed, the Ministry of Defence will of course be significantly supporting Portsmouth City Council's programme.There are currently no plans to allocate funding to Portsmouth City Council other than in response to requests for direct support to our D-Day veterans.Portsmouth City Council is a part of the Ministry of Defence's planning, which includes conversations about the exact nature of its support, but it is expected that the activity in Portsmouth will be one part of a D-Day 75 programme that will be of similar size and scale to the D-Day 70 commemorations.

Armed Forces: Equipment

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how much funding his Department has allocated to (a) Attenuating Energy Projectiles, (b) Discriminating Irritant Projectiles, (c) Riot Batons, (d) Personal Protective Equipment for use in Riot Control operations, (e) Riot Shields, and (f) Non-Porous Bags used for the storage and transportation of corpses in financial years (i) 2019-20, (ii) 2018-19, (iii) 2017-18, and (iv) 2016-17.

Stuart Andrew: The information requested is set out in the table below. Figures represent money that was allocated for these items each financial year (FY), not actual spend. The Ministry of Defence does not use discriminating irritant projectiles. We cannot break down the allocated funding of body bags as they fall under a wider general supplies inventory.  FY 2016-17FY 2017-18FY 2018-19FY 2019-201Attenuating Energy Projectiles (L60)£137,000£108,000£102,000£170,000Riot Batons, Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) and Riot Shields2£0£0£1.91 million£132,0001 Funding allocations for 2019-20 have not yet been finalised2 Batons, Shields and PPE are procured under a combined programme to deliver dismounted public order capability and therefore projected costs are inextricably linked.

Ministry of Defence: Consultants

Nia Griffith: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, with reference to page 14 of the Finance & Economics Annual Bulletin Departmental Resources Statistics 2018, if he will publish the companies his Department has contracted for consultancy and how much of the £50 million consultancy spend was spent with each company.

Stuart Andrew: The Ministry of Defence’s consultancy expenditure for 2017-18 by supplier rounded to the nearest £1,000 is published online at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/mod-spending-over-25000-january-to-december-2018

Armed Forces: Coroners

Stephen Morgan: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Justice on the establishing a duty on coroners to record whether an individual was a (a) veteran and (b) serving member of the armed forces.

Mr Tobias Ellwood: No such discussions have taken place. The Ministry of Defence takes the welfare of Service personnel and veterans very seriously and has published studies on the causes of death, including suicide, of veterans. Studies into veterans deaths since the Gulf and Falklands wars show that the suicide rates amongst veterans were lower than comparative rates in the civilian population. In addition, Lord Ashcroft’s Veterans’ Transition Review (2014) found that Service leavers are no more likely to commit suicide than the rest of the population. Veteran Deaths connected with the Falklands War: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/307098/20140428_Falklands_Statistical_Release-1982to2013.pdf Veteran Deaths connected with the 1990/1991 Gulf War: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/517240/20160125-Gulf_March16_REVISED_O.pdf Veterans can also access support services from: www.gov.uk/mental-health-support-for-the-uk-armed-forces call the 24-hour veterans' mental health helpline on 0800 138 1619 or access the Veterans Gateway: https://www.veteransgateway.org.uk/.

Ministry of Defence: Pay

Jo Stevens: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many and what proportion of directly employed civil servants in his Department earn under £50,000 per annum.

Mr Tobias Ellwood: As at 30 September 2018, the number of directly employed civil servants earning less than £50,000 per annum, was 49,295 representing 91.8% of employees.This does not reflect changes in salaries brought about by the 2018 pay award which will be implemented at the end of October 2018 and backdated to 1 August 2018.

Scotland Office

Food Banks: Scotland

David Linden: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, whether he plans to visit a food bank in October 2018.

David Mundell: I currently have no plans to visit a food bank in my capacity as Secretary of State for Scotland in October 2018.

Agriculture: Subsidies

Martin Whitfield: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, whether agricultural support payments to the Scottish Government during the transition period will be made through the Barnett formula.

David Mundell: This Government has pledged to continue to commit the same cash total in funds for farm support until the end of the parliament, expected in 2022. This figure includes all EU and Exchequer funding provided for farm support under both Pillar I and Pillar II.

Department for International Trade

Trade Promotion: North East

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, how many and what proportion of international trade delegations to the UK have visited the North East in the last year.

Graham Stuart: The Department for International Trade (DIT) has been engaged with nine delegations that have visited the North East since October 2017. This figure covers both trade and investment delegations. DIT in the North East region works closely with the DIT Northern Powerhouse Investment Hub to attract inward investment delegations to the region whilst also working closely with the North East England Chamber of Commerce to attract trade delegations. The number of UK wide inbound trade delegations is not held centrally by DIT.

Overseas Trade: Burma

Chris Law: To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, what official advice his Department provides to firms on doing business with Burmese military-owned and controlled companies.

Graham Stuart: Department for International Trade indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Arms Trade: Israel

Lloyd Russell-Moyle: To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, what assessment the Government has made of the potential risk of nuclear proliferation arsing from the approval of the export of submarine components to Israel.

Graham Stuart: Export licence applications for all countries, including Israel, are rigorously assessed on a case by case basis against the Consolidated EU and National Arms Export Licensing Criteria, taking account of all prevailing circumstances at the time of application. In these cases we assessed that the components in question did not have utility in a nuclear weapons programme and therefore there was no potential risk of nuclear proliferation.

Arms Trade: Exports

Lloyd Russell-Moyle: To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, what estimate he has made of the number of UK jobs that depend (a) directly and (b) indirectly on arms exports.

Graham Stuart: The Department for International Trade (DIT) does not hold this information.

Department for Transport

Heathrow Airport: Railways

Mr Jonathan Lord: Whether he plans to approve a southern rail link to Heathrow Airport.

Joseph Johnson: The Department is actively looking at a future Southern Rail Link to Heathrow and this scheme will be considered alongside other national priorities through the planning process for the next control period. In May we launched a formal Market Sounding for a Southern Rail Link to Heathrow and results of this are expected to be published later this year. The outcome of this engagement will provide further clarity on whether to and, if so, how this scheme will be progressed and funded.

*No heading*

Giles Watling: What steps he is taking to improve the condition of local roads.

Jesse Norman: The Government has committed investment of more than £6 billion to highways maintenance between 2015 and 2021. This funding includes an action fund to help combat potholes totalling £296 million between 2016 and 2021. The Department published its latest statistics on road conditions in England in January 2018, which showed that at that time local classified roads had been improving overall, with fewer local roads to be considered for maintenance. The Department recognises, however, that the severe frosts of 2018 are likely to have affected local road quality.

Heathrow Airport: Railways

Seema Malhotra: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, when he plans to publish his response to the market sounding consultation on a Southern Rail Link to Heathrow.

Joseph Johnson: In May the Department launched a formal Market Sounding for a Southern Rail Link to Heathrow and results of this are expected to be published later this year. The outcome of this engagement will provide further clarity on whether this scheme will be progressed and funded, and if so how.

South Eastern Rail Franchise

Teresa Pearce: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, for what reason is the award of the South Eastern rail franchise delayed; what the revised timetable is for that award; and if he will make a statement.

Joseph Johnson: The Department continues to make progress evaluating bids for the South Eastern franchise. The Department will make an announcement on the intention to award in due course.

Lifeboats: Grants

Jessica Morden: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether he intends to announce a new programme of funding for the inshore and inland rescue boat grant.

Ms Nusrat Ghani: The Inshore and Inland Rescue Boat Grant Fund has already awarded 201 grants totalling £3.6 million to 98 charities around the UK. We are currently engaged in the 2018-19 bidding round where a further £1 million is available to support these charities. A decision on funding for future years will be taken in due course.

Diesel Trains

Stella Creasy: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will direct Angel Trains to (a) defer the transfer to West Midlands Trains of the seven diesel trains subleased to Arriva Rail London and (b) return to Arriva Rail London the one diesel train already transferred until such time as it can be replaced by an electric train.

Joseph Johnson: It is of utmost importance that passengers in both the West Midlands and London receive the improvements they have been promised. We fully expect the diesel trains to enter service in the West Midlands in May 2019 as planned, giving Arriva Rail London ample time to take receipt of the electric trains. The diesel trains bound for the West Midlands will replace 30 year old stock, and will provide much-needed additional capacity for passengers on Birmingham Snow Hill and Nuneaton to Leamington Spa services. This requires the existing train to stay with West Midlands Trains for driver training, and to continue the process of installing toilets which meet modern accessibility requirements. Transport for London are content for this unit to remain with West Midlands Trains.

A34: Oxfordshire

Layla Moran: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what progress has been made on delivering the A34 Lodge Hill scheme in Abingdon.

Jesse Norman: The scheme to provide south facing slip roads to the A34 at Lodge Hill is being promoted by Oxfordshire County Council.

South Eastern Rail Franchise

Janet Daby: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what progress has been made on the award of the South Eastern rail franchise.

Joseph Johnson: The Department continues to make progress evaluating bids for the South Eastern franchise. The Department will make an announcement on the intention to award in due course.

Department for Transport: Northern Rail

Jon Trickett: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many meetings his Department has had with representatives of Northern Rail in the last three months.

Joseph Johnson: The Rail North Partnership which represents both the Department and Transport for The North have met or been in direct contact with representatives of Arriva Rail North on a daily basis in the last three months.

Northern: Electrification

Jon Trickett: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment his Department has made of the effect of the cancellation of line electrification on the operation of Northern Rail services.

Joseph Johnson: The cancellation of electrification means that improved rail journeys will be delivered to the Lakes Line between Oxenholme and Windermere without disruptive engineering works and overhead wires being erected in an environmentally sensitive area. New trains will be provided next year on through services from the branch to Manchester. Northern are also developing a proposal to bring in alternative energy or bi-mode trains.

M56: Repairs and Maintenance

Graham Stringer: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what estimate he has made of the cost of upgrading to a smart motorway the M56 adjacent to junctions six and seven; and what assessment he has made of the effect of upgrading that stretch of motorway on (a) safety and (b) journey times.

Jesse Norman: The latest estimate for the cost of the M56 junction 6-8 smart motorway scheme is between £62m - £120m. The economic assessment for this scheme indicates that it will lead to an overall reduction in collisions and casualties on the network over the 60 year appraisal period. Traffic modelling indicates that the scheme will divert vehicles from the surrounding road network, releasing the pressure on that network. This will improve journey time reliability and contribute to a reduction in the number of people killed and seriously injured (KSIs) on the road network as a whole. This scheme is also expected to deliver journey time savings in both directions.

Roads: Repairs and Maintenance

Christian Matheson: What recent discussions he has had with Highways England on the next Road Investment Strategy.

Jesse Norman: I have regular contact with Highways England on this matter. Earlier this year, the Department consulted on Highways England’s proposed priorities for the second Road Investment Strategy. A response to this consultation will be published in the coming weeks.

Roads: North Devon

Peter Heaton-Jones: What discussions he has had with Devon County Council on improvements to the North Devon link road.

Jesse Norman: Department and Council officials have met to discuss the arrangements for taking forward the scheme to improve the North Devon Link Road between South Molton and Bideford which was announced in May. The meeting was constructive and we will continue to work closely with the Council leading up to their submission of a final business case in 2020. The Department has given provisional approval to investing £82.1m towards the £93.1m scheme.

High Speed 2 Railway Line

Mr Marcus Jones: What assessment he has made of the potential effect of High Speed Two on the economies of the (a) Midlands and (b) North of England.

Ms Nusrat Ghani: HS2 will transform the UK economy with construction supporting up to 30,000 new jobs, as set out in the HS2 Skills, Employment and Education Strategy, launched last month. 70 percent of construction jobs supported over the entire HS2 programme will be outside of London. It will directly link 8 of the UK’s 10 largest cities and provide a step change in the country’s railway capacity.

Road Traffic

Michael Tomlinson: What steps his Department is taking to reduce congestion on the strategic road network.

Jesse Norman: The Government is investing £15 billion to maintain and improve England’s strategic road network and reduce congestion. Highways England are making good progress delivering the schemes set out in the first Road Investment Strategy. In their latest delivery plan update, published in July 2018, they confirm that 22 major schemes have been completed since 2015.

Ports

Mr Paul Sweeney: What representations he has made to the Chancellor of the Exchequer on support for UK ports to prepare for the UK leaving the EU.

Chris Grayling: The Department for Transport is working closely with HM Treasury, HM Revenue & Customs and other Departments under the auspices of the Border Delivery Group. As part of this process, we are engaging with ports and encouraging prudent preparations.

Foreign and Commonwealth Office

Emergency Travel Documents

Jo Stevens: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what estimate he has made of the cost to the public purse of providing emergency travel documents from UK embassies in each of the last five years.

Harriett Baldwin: Holding answer received on 09 October 2018



In line with HM Treasury (HMT) guidelines, we are required to recover the full cost of providing all of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office's (FCO) consular services, including the provision of Emergency Travel Documents (ETDs). Fees introduced in April 2016 took account, for the first time, of the full cost of providing consular services and forecast income over the Spending Review period. Consular services are funded through income received from the Consular premium (£14.93 on each standard passport issued) and fees charged for specific services provided to British nationals abroad (for example, the issue of ETDs) and legalisation services provided in the UK. Fees are differentiated between types of service. The fee for providing any individual service is the same throughout the overseas network.We conduct an annual review of consular fees to ensure that the fees charged are appropriate and reflect the costs of providing consular services. The costs attributed to providing consular services fluctuate from year to year depending on the overall cost to Government of operating the overseas network and how these are shared amongst the different Government Departments and FCO services using the platform. The Consular Fees Model then further allocates costs across four categories of service (providing assistance, ETDs, notarial acts and legalisation of documents). For example, the increased cost in 2017-18 reflects changes to how the Consular Fees Model makes use of staff activity recording which should allow for more consistency in future, but does make comparison with prior years less relevant. YearTotal Cost of Issuing ETDs2013-14£7,493,4092014-15£5,046,4532015-16£4,632,4892016-17£8,257,6732017-18£12,918,549

USA: International Criminal Court

Rosie Duffield: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, if he will make representations to his US counterpart on that country's recent announcements on the International Criminal Court.

Mark Field: The US is clear on our position on the International Criminal Court (ICC). The ICC has our support in pursuing the mandate it was given under the Rome statute and we continue to support international criminal justice and accountability at the national or international level. The Foreign Secretary raised the ICC with US Secretary of State Pompeo recently and highlighted the UK’s ongoing support for international criminal justice and accountability.​

Hassan Mushaima

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, whether he has made representations to the Government of Bahrain on the refusal by Jau prison authorities to allow political prisoner Hassan Mushaima access to (a) a diabetes specialist, (b) regular family visits and (c) books and personal notes; and if he will make a statement.

Alistair Burt: As I said in my response to the debate in Westminster Hall on 11 September, the Government of Bahrain have released a detailed public statement regarding the access to healthcare that Mr Mushaima has received since he has been in detention, and we have received categorical assurances that, in his case and others, there is and has been access to appropriate medical care while in detention. We have also received similar assurances regarding visitation rights and access to reading and writing materials.

Hassan Mushaima

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, whether officials of his Department have met Ali Mushaima to discuss making representations to the Government of Bahrain on the refusal by Jau prison authorities to allow political prisoner Hassan Mushaima access to (a) a diabetes specialist, (b) family visits and (c) books and personal notes; and if he will make a statement.

Alistair Burt: The Foreign and Commonwealth Office have replied to queries raised by Ali Mushaima.As I said in my response to the debate in Westminster Hall on 11 September, the Government of Bahrain have released a detailed public statement regarding the access to healthcare that Mr Hassan Mushaima has received since he has been in detention, and we have received categorical assurances that, in his case and others, there is and has been access to appropriate medical care while in detention. We have also received similar assurances regarding visitation rights and access to reading and writing materials.

Iran: Politics and Government

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had with his French counterpart on the recent Iran Freedom gathering in Paris.

Sir Alan Duncan: We understand that investigations have been ongoing in a number of European countries regarding perpetrators of a plot against a conference in Paris. On 3rd October, France announced plans to freeze the financial assets of two Iranian nationals, as well as assets belonging to the Iranian domestic intelligence agency in response to the foiled attack. We are not aware at this stage of a link to the UK. The Foreign Secretary has not discussed this with his French counterpart, although we engage regularly with the French Government on a range of security issues.

Yemen: Peace Negotiations

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment he has made of the merits of including representatives of (a) the Southern Transitional Council; (b) political parties other than the General People’s Congress and (c) tribes in future rounds of UN-mediated peace talks on Yemen.

Alistair Burt: ​An inclusive political settlement is the only way to bring long-term stability to Yemen and address the humanitarian crisis. It is for the UN Special Envoy, Martin Griffiths, to determine the best route to such an inclusive political settlement, including whether, when and how to involve representatives of the South, political parties, tribes, women, youth and civil society. We fully support the efforts of the Special Envoy in this regard. We urge all Yemeni groups to pursue political aspirations through peaceful dialogue and to refrain from violence and inciting violence.

Burma: Rohingya

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent discussions he has had with representatives of the International Criminal Court on a potential investigation into alleged crimes against humanity committed against the Rohingya.

Mark Field: ​In his meeting with Burma's State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi on 20 September, the Foreign Secretary made clear that holding to account those responsible for atrocities was of critical importance. The Foreign Secretary has made clear that, referring the situation in Burma to the International Criminal Court (ICC) is an option the UN Security Council should consider. The UK is calling for the UNSC to debate the report of the UN Fact Finding Mission. Foreign and Commonwealth Office Officials in The Hague, have regular contact with the Office of the Prosecutor on this and other Court business. The UK respects the independence of the Court.

USA: Sanctions

Sir Vince Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment the Government has made of the merits of coordinating UK sanctions against individuals with the US.

Sir Alan Duncan: Sanctions are a key foreign policy tool, which are most effective when designed and applied alongside international partners to achieve shared foreign policy objectives. To that end, the UK will continue to maintain close cooperation with our international partners, including the US, on sanctions policy.

Rosneft

Sir Vince Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment the Government has made of the merits of listing of the state-owned Russian company Rosneft on the London Stock Exchange after sanctions were imposed on that company by the US and the EU.

Sir Alan Duncan: The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) operates the UK Listing Regime and retains independence from the Government in its regulatory and supervisory functions. This is an integral part of the FCA's ability to perform its role and responsibilities. Its credibility, authority and value to consumers would be undermined if it were possible for the Government to intervene in its decision-making. At the time of its listing on the London Stock Exchange in 2006, Rosneft met the applicable conditions. Since 2014, Rosneft have been subject to EU economic sanctions. The UK fully complies with these sanctions, which were most recently extended on 5 July.

EU Action: Sanctions

Sir Vince Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment he has made of the merits of coordinating UK sanctions policy with the EU after the UK leaves the EU.

Sir Alan Duncan: Sanctions are a key foreign policy tool which are most effective when designed and applied alongside international partners to achieve shared foreign policy objectives. To that end, the UK will continue to maintain close cooperation with our international partners on sanctions policy. The Prime Minister set out in her speech to the Munich Security Conference in February 2018, that the UK will look to carry over existing EU sanctions when we leave the EU. In future, it will be in the UK's and the EU's mutual interest to discuss sanctions policy and decide where and how to combine efforts to the greatest effect.

EU Action: Money Laundering

Sir Vince Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, which Department will bear responsibility for determining which individuals and bodies are subject to UK sanctions under the Sanctions and Anti-Money Laundering Act 2018.

Sir Alan Duncan: The Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) will bear responsibility for determining which individuals and bodies are subject to the majority of UK sanctions under the Sanctions and Anti-Money Laundering Act 2018. Parliament will be fully updated on sanctions governance and responsibilities ahead of full commencement of the Act.

Asia: Overseas Aid

Helen Goodman: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assistance he has offered to his counterparts from East and South-East Asia following Typhoon Manghkut.

Mark Field: The thoughts of the Government are with the people affected by the devastation caused by Typhoon Mangkhut last month. The Foreign Secretary wrote to his Philippine counterpart, Secretary of the Department of Foreign Affairs, Alan Cayetano, to express our condolences and offer the UK's support.The Department for International Development (DFID) led on the UK's humanitarian response, deploying humanitarian experts to the Philippines in advance of the Typhoon. The Government of the Philippines, and agencies including the Philippines Red Cross, were well prepared and responded effectively. Given this, the UK response was limited to its existing core support through organisations such as the UN and Red Cross operating on the ground.Previous DFID funding to upgrade the Philippines' National Resource Operations Centre, following Typhoon Haiyan in 2013, helped ensure food assistance rapidly reached over one million people affected by Typhoon Mangkut.

Hong Kong: Politics and Government

Helen Goodman: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs,  what recent discussions has he had with Hong Kong authorities on the formal outlawing of the Hong Kong National Party.

Mark Field: The Government issued the following statement on 24 September 2018 following the announcement by the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government to ban the Hong Kong National Party (HKNP):“We are concerned by the decision of the Hong Kong SAR Government to prohibit the HKNP. This is the first time a party has been banned under the Societies Ordinance since the handover.The UK does not support Hong Kong independence, but Hong Kong’s high degree of autonomy and its rights and freedoms are central to its way of life, and it is important they are fully respected.”We have discussed this issue with the Hong Kong authorities.

Brazil: Elections

Helen Goodman: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had with his counterpart in Brazil on the Brazilian elections in October 2018.

Sir Alan Duncan: The Foreign Secretary discussed the Brazilian elections with Foreign Minister Nunes when they spoke on 14 September. He wished Brazil well with the preparations and noted that the UK would be following the campaign with interest.

Hong Kong: Politics and Government

Sarah Champion: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment he has made of the compatibility of the Hong Kong government's decision to ban the Hong Kong National Party with the Sino-British Joint Declaration; and what representations he has made to the government of Hong Kong on that matter.

Mark Field: The Government issued the following statement on 24 September 2018 following the announcement by the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government to ban the Hong Kong National Party (HKNP):“We are concerned by the decision of the Hong Kong SAR Government to prohibit the HKNP. This is the first time a party has been banned under the Societies Ordinance since the handover.The UK does not support Hong Kong independence, but Hong Kong’s high degree of autonomy and its rights and freedoms are central to its way of life, and it is important they are fully respected.”We have discussed this issue with the Hong Kong authorities.​

Yemen: Military Intervention

Lloyd Russell-Moyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, pursuant to Answer of 23 July 2018 to Question 163751 on Yemen: Military Intervention, what role UK liaison officers in the targeting rooms of the Saudi air force play in relation to Saudi air operations in Yemen.

Alistair Burt: ​UK Liaison Officers in the Saudi Air Operations Centre have no role in the conduct of Saudi air operations. They are there in liaison capacity only.

Ilois: Finance

Mike Kane: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of  10 September 2018 to Question 170339 on Ilois: Finance, how much of the £40 million fund for Chagossians has been allocated to date; to whom that funding has been allocated; and for what purposes that money has been allocated.

Sir Alan Duncan: ​£230,134.19 of the £40m fund has been spent to date, largely on implementing an expanded programme of Heritage Visits for Chagossians to the British Indian Ocean Territory. The bulk of the funding will be allocated once we have a clear assessment of need, and an agreed mechanism for effectively and fairly disbursing the funding, in collaboration with the Chagossian communities in the UK, Seychelles and Mauritius.

Joe Robinson

Chris Williamson: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent discussions he has had with representatives of the Turkish Government on the imprisonment of the British national Joe Robinson.

Sir Alan Duncan: We are doing all we can to support Mr Robinson. I have raised his case with my counterpart, and also raised it with the Turkish Foreign Minister when I visited last year. Mr Robinson has also had consular support since his arrest. Consular staff visited Mr Robinson while he was in detention to check on his welfare and arranged prison visits for his mother. We have continued to offer Mr Robinson consular support since his conditional release in November.

Armed Conflict

Dan Carden: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, whether he plans to update the protection of civilians strategy; and if he will make a statement.

Mark Field: ​The principles of the 2010 Protection of Civilians Strategy, continues to guide our work and we consistently review our cross-Government approach. We aim to address the growing challenges of protecting civilians affected by conflict through political engagement, strengthening accountability, peace support operations, ensuring respect for International Humanitarian Law in UK military operations, strengthening state and non-state capacity, humanitarian action, and offering refuge to those in need of protection. The continuing evolution of our approach is demonstrated by the UK's adherence, in April 2018, to the Safe Schools Declaration which supports the protection and continuation of education in armed conflict.

Thailand: Arrests

Helen Goodman: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what representations he has made to his counterpart in the Government of Thailand on reports of arbitrary arrests in that country.

Mark Field: We called on Thailand during its 2nd Universal Periodic Review at the UN Human Rights Council in 2016, to ensure no restrictions on freedom of expression especially for the media and human rights defenders, and that no one faces threats and harassment for expressing their views.We have not had recent reports of arbitrary arrests in Thailand, but we do have concerns about the use of legislation to curtail freedoms of expression, assembly and association since the coup. We continue to raise these and wider human rights concerns with the Thai authorities, both at Ministerial level and through our Embassy in Bangkok. Most recently, our Ambassador to Thailand raised these concerns with the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Justice Prajin Juntong.

Hassan Mushaima

Matt Western: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what representations he has made to the government of Bahrain to ensure that Hassan Mushaima (a) receives adequate medical care in line with the UN's Nelson Mandela Rules, (b) is granted family visitation rights, (c) is granted access to reading materials.

Alistair Burt: ​As I said in my response to the debate in Westminster Hall on 11 September, the Government of Bahrain have released a detailed public statement regarding the access to healthcare that Mr Mushaima has received since he has been in detention, and we have received categorical assurances that, in his case and others, there is and has been access to appropriate medical care while in detention. We have also received similar assurances regarding visitation rights and access to reading and writing materials.

Department for International Development

Overseas Aid

David T. C. Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, which organisations received more than £20 million from her Department in financial year 2017-18.

Harriett Baldwin: The supply partners that received more than £20 million from DFID in financial year 2017-18 are in the table below.Adam Smith International LtdKPMG LLPAECOM Professional ServicesMarie Stopes InternationalAfrican Development Bank GroupMaternal Newborn and Child Health Programme, PakistanAgDevCo LimitedMedicines for Malaria VentureAsian Development BankMercy Corps EuropeAsian Infrastructure Investment BankMinistry of Finance and Economic Cooperation, EthiopiaBill & Melinda Gates FoundationMinistry of Health, Government of EthiopiaBRACMott MacDonald LtdBritish CouncilNorwegian Refugee CouncilBritish Red CrossOxford Policy ManagementCARE InternationalPakistan National Cash Transfer ProgrammeCDC Group plc.PalladiumCoffey International Development LtdPopulation Services InternationalCommonwealth Scholarships CommissionPRICEWATERHOUSECOOPERS LtdCrown Agents Bank LimitedSave the ChildrenCrown AgentsSG Hambros Bank & Trust LtdDAI EuropeSt Helena Corporate FinanceEuropean Commission (including the European Development Fund)State Bank of PakistanEuropean Commission – Core Development budgetTanzania Ministry of FinanceEuropean Investment BankThe International Committee of the Red CrossFood and Agriculture OrganisationThe Power of Nutrition.Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO)The World Bank GroupGlobal Alliance for Vaccines and ImmunizationTrademark East AfricaGovernment of MontserratUnited Nations FoundationIMA World HealthUSAIDIMC Worldwide LimitedVoluntary Services OverseasInternational Organization for MigrationWorld Food ProgrammeInternational Rescue CommitteeWorld Health OrganisationKarandaaz Pakistan

Nigeria: Floods

Preet Kaur Gill: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what support her Department is providing to people affected by flooding in Kogi, Anambra, Delta and Niger states in Nigeria.

Harriett Baldwin: Through the Start Fund, the Department for International Development is providing support to Action Aid, Christian Aid, the Catholic Agency For Overseas Development and CARE international to deliver assistance to people affected by flooding in Kogi, Anambra, Delta and Niger states. This support will reach 23,000 people and includes food, shelter items, sanitary items such as buckets and soap, and cash transfers to help women restart their livelihoods.

Gaza: Humanitarian Aid

Meg Hillier: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what steps are being taken by his Department to tackle the humanitarian situation in Gaza.

Alistair Burt: The UK remains deeply concerned about the humanitarian situation in Gaza and is supporting hospitals and patients through the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) and addressing critical water and sanitation needs for 2 million people through the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF). We are a consistent top-five donor to the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA), which provides basic services to 1.3 million people in Gaza, including basic health care. We are also supporting humanitarian access and enabling reconstruction efforts in Gaza. In the longer term, the UK will help to address the underlying causes of humanitarian strife in Gaza by focussing on economic development and helping to lift the overall standard of living by increasing trade and job creation, enabling greater movement and access for people and goods and enhancing the supply of electricity and clean water. Ultimately, a political settlement is the only way to ensure lasting peace for Palestinians and Israelis alike.

Burma: Infrastructure

Chris Law: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, which infrastructure projects in Burma receive support from her Department.

Alistair Burt: UK infrastructure funding in Burma mainly focuses on local interventions working with communities. This includes construction of rural health centres and schools, local roads, community centres, and improved water supplies. DFID supports the Private Infrastructure Development Group (PIDG), which works through private sector partners to support the development of early stage private sector infrastructure projects. Details of Burma projects can be found at: www.pidg.org. CDC group, which receives UK Aid investment, currently has 5 active investments in Burma, including in the financial services, communications services and IT sectors. Details can be found at: www.cdcgroup.com. For all DFID investments in infrastructure, we ensure that thorough due diligence is undertaken.

South Sudan: Sexual Offences

Preet Kaur Gill: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, if she will make an estimate of the number of sexual violence cases against foreign aid workers in South Sudan.

Harriett Baldwin: Data collected by the EU- and US-funded Aid in Danger project (from both open and confidential sources) show that, between January 2015 and December 2017, there were 12 incidents of sexual violence and abuse committed against aid workers (individuals employed by or attached to a humanitarian, multi-mandated, UN or government agency, foreign or South Sudanese) in South Sudan. Aid in Danger reports that the low number of incidents recorded in South Sudan suggests that sexual violence against aid workers goes under-reported.

Department for International Development: Procurement

Preet Kaur Gill: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, with reference to the September 2018 Independent Commission for Aid performance review entitled Achieving value for money through procurement, what steps her Department is taking to ensure that small (a) firms and (b) NGOs are not discouraged from competing for DFID contracts by the supplier review.

Harriett Baldwin: The Supplier Review delivered a number of measures to make it easier for new and smaller businesses to win funding from DFID and ensure fair treatment of sub-contractors. Following consultations with small and medium sized enterprises and NGOs three tiers of reporting requirements for the Supply Partner Code of Conduct have been developed to ensure our processes do not create disproportionate burdens for smaller organisations and NGOs. We are now designing a large new funding framework with dedicated “lots” for smaller suppliers. Furthermore, we continue to hold regional Open for Business events, led by Ministers, across the country to help local businesses understand our processes and encourage them to compete for DFID business. This is all helping DFID to tackle potential barriers and makes it less onerous, costly and time consuming for smaller companies to compete for our contracts.

Gaza: Humanitarian Aid

Sir Mark Hendrick: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what steps she is taking in response to the deteriorating humanitarian situation in Gaza.

Alistair Burt: The UK remains deeply concerned about the humanitarian situation in Gaza and is supporting hospitals and patients through the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) and addressing critical water and sanitation needs for 2 million people through the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF). We are a consistent top-five donor to the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA), which provides basic services to 1.3 million people in Gaza, including basic health care. We are also supporting humanitarian access and enabling reconstruction efforts in Gaza. In the longer term, the UK will help to address the underlying causes of humanitarian strife in Gaza by focussing on economic development and helping to lift the overall standard of living by increasing trade and job creation, enabling greater movement and access for people and goods and enhancing the supply of electricity and clean water. Ultimately, a political settlement is the only way to ensure lasting peace for Palestinians and Israelis alike.

Sudan: Politics and Government

Preet Kaur Gill: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what recent steps her Department has taken to support civil society in Sudan.

Harriett Baldwin: DFID Sudan primarily engages and supports civil society through the Local Partnership and Dialogue Programme (LPDP) with a total support of £12 million which aims to build the capacity of non-state actors to demand and deliver more inclusive, democratic & accountable governance. Over the past 3 years, the programme has delivered the following:Institutional capacity building - tailored to specific needs of 25 Civil Society Organisations (CSO).Funding CSOs to pursue governance issues such as basic service delivery (e.g. health and education), environment and rule of law.Empowerment of Youth Leaders - through training and mentoring for their empowerment, training more than 60 activists from civil society, political parties and youth-led organisations/initiatives, by raising their awareness of democratic values and practices.Facilitation of dialogue among and within 20 political groups with focus on those with social and political divides to enhance political dialogue processes such as the National Dialogue and the Peace negotiation process in the Blue Nile and South Kordofan States.

Nigeria: Abduction

Preet Kaur Gill: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, pursuant to the Answer of 3 May 2018 to Question 137074, what steps her Department is taking to ensure that girls feel safe to attend school in Nigeria’s conflict areas.

Harriett Baldwin: Every girl has the right to feel safe when she goes to school. The UK and Nigeria have both endorsed the Safe Schools Declaration, which deters the military from use of schools and prevents schools becoming targets in conflict-affected areas. DFID is supporting the Government of Nigeria to implement the Declaration, including in the North East. DFID’s Education in Emergencies programme has trained community coalitions to monitor early warning signals of insecurity or attacks at schools and informal learning centres, has constructed or rehabilitated gender segregated toilet facilities in over thirty schools, and has already trained over 450 teachers to provide psychosocial support to over 25,000 girls and boys who have been affected by the conflict.

Department for Education

Department for Education: Staff

Angela Rayner: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many staff are employed in the office of (a) Ministers of his Department and (b) the Permanent Secretary.

Anne Milton: There are 36 staff employed by the department in ministers’ offices, and six in the office of the Permanent Secretary.

Bright Tribe Multi-academy Trust

Sandy Martin: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if he will make an assessment of the efficacy of the financial management of Bright Tribe Academy Trust.

Nadhim Zahawi: Bright Tribe Trust, along with all academy trusts, is subject to a rigorous system of oversight and accountability, allowing us to take action to deal with under-performance, including transferring schools to new trusts when necessary. The Education and Skills Funding Agency has worked with Bright Tribe Trust since 2015 to ensure the best outcomes for their pupils and academies. More broadly, it is important to place the Bright Tribe case into context and emphasise that the financial health of the academies sector is strong; and in the most recent published financial statements, we found that more than 95% of trusts had no issues.

Adult Education: Finance

Ben Bradley: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what support his Department provides to adults without a level 2 qualification in (a) English and (b) maths to allow them to undertake further study.

Anne Milton: We recognise the importance of helping adults to secure a good level of English and maths. We provide full funding for adults in England to undertake a range of approved English and maths courses, from entry level up to level 2 (GCSE or equivalent). In addition, we provide full funding for unemployed adults who are looking for work to study English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) courses, and 50% of the course fee for other adults who need ESOL. We are also improving the quality of curriculum that adults are taught by reforming maths and English Functional Skills qualifications. This is to improve their rigour and quality and make sure that these qualifications help adults gain the English and maths skills that employers need.

Flexible Learning Fund: East Midlands

Ben Bradley: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how much funding from the Flexible Learning Fund has been allocated to projects in the East Midlands.

Anne Milton: The Flexible Learning Fund pilot is designed to address barriers relating to the ‘supply side’ of learning by supporting organisations to develop and test flexible and accessible ways of delivering learning for adults with low or intermediate level technical skills or who lack basic skills.Projects led by organisations that are based and deliver in the East Midlands have a combined current allocation of £518,643.Projects proposing nationwide delivery that constituents in the East Midlands will be able to access have a combined current allocation of £782,615. Projects that have identified the East Midlands as a potential delivery area or have proposed delivery partners in the East Midlands have a combined current allocation of £2,933,810.

Children: Day Care

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether his Department has a policy on helping students with children to study at university while providing childcare support.

Mr Sam Gyimah: The government recognises the value of parents continuing in, or returning to, education and provides support to those enrolled on recognised education courses. Eligible student parents may be able to claim a Childcare Grant, which offers support with up to 85% of their childcare costs, depending on their household income.The maximum Childcare Grant for the 2018 to 2019 academic year is: Up to £164.70 a week for one child.Up to £282.36 a week for two or more children. Parents' Learning Allowance is additional funding to help students who are also parents. This can be used for everyday costs of study, such as books, study materials and travel.

Bus Services: Concessions

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what the timescale is for the introduction of student bus passes in the academic year 2018-19.

Nick Gibb: Local authorities in England have a statutory duty to provide free home to school transport for all eligible pupils. It is for local authorities to decide how to fulfil that duty. They may, if they wish, provide pupils with bus passes, but timescales are not mandated by the government.

Department for Education: Living Wage

Gareth Snell: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many staff in his Department that work (a) inside and (b) outside Greater London are paid at a rate below the Real Living Wage.

Gareth Snell: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many staff in his Department that work (a) inside and (b) outside Greater London are paid at a rate below the London Living Wage.

Anne Milton: The Department for Education and its executive agencies staff, including all those inside and outside of Greater London are all paid at least the Real Living Wage.All staff based inside Greater London are paid at least the London Living Wage. There are 103 staff based outside Greater London that are paid below the London Living Wage but are all paid the Real Living Wage.

Department for Education: Working Hours

Gareth Snell: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what the contracted hours are for the highest paid member of staff in his Department.

Anne Milton: The highest paid member of staff in the department is a full-time member of the Senior Civil Service (SCS). SCS members are required to work a minimum (over a 5-day week) of 42 hours, including daily meal breaks of one hour.

Department for Education: Staff

Gareth Snell: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what the total number of staff (a) employed directly by (b) seconded to and (c) working under contract to his Department.

Anne Milton: The total number of staff (a) employed directly by (b) seconded to and (c) working under contract to the department, as at 31 July 2018, is detailed in the table below:  Staff employed directly by department6154Staff seconded to the department0Staff working under contract641

Department for Education: Temporary Employment

Jon Trickett: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many staff in his Department are classified as contingent labour.

Anne Milton: The number of agency staff, contractors and consultants in the department, classified as contingent labour, as at 31 July 2018 was 641.

Primary Education: Wallasey

Ms Angela Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many primary schools in Wallasey constituency were full or oversubscribed in the school years commencing in (a) 2016, (b) 2017 and (c) 2018.

Nick Gibb: The Department collects information from each local authority on the number of school places through the annual school capacity survey. The Department does not collect school capacity information at parliamentary constituency level. Data relating to the position in the 2017/18 academic year is currently being collected and quality assured. The latest published data held relates to the position in the 2016/17 academic year and can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/school-capacity-academic-year-2016-to-2017.As of 1 May 2017 (2016/17 academic year), Wirral Local Authority had 27 primary schools that were full or had one or more pupils in excess of capacity, out of a total of 90 primary schools. Additional figures for the 2015/16 and 2014/15 academic years can be found in the table below: Primary schools in Wirral Academic YearNumber of primary schoolsNumber of primary schools that are full or have one or more pupils in excess of school capacity2016/1790272015/1690252014/159024 Source: School Capacity survey

Secondary Education: Wallasey

Ms Angela Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many secondary schools in Wallasey constituency were full or oversubscribed in the school years commencing in (a) 2016 , (b) 2017 and (c) 2018.

Nick Gibb: The Department collects information from each local authority on the number of school places through the annual school capacity survey (SCAP). The Department does not collect school capacity information at parliamentary constituency level. Data relating to the position in the 2017/2018 academic year is currently being collected and quality assured. The latest published data held relates to the position in the 2016/17 academic year and can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/school-capacity-academic-year-2016-to-2017.As of 1 May 2017 (2016/17 academic year), Wirral Local Authority had two secondary schools that were full or had one or more pupils in excess of capacity, out of a total of 21 secondary schools. Additional figures for the 2015/16 and 2014/15 academic years can be found in the table below: Secondary schools in Wirral Academic YearNumber of secondary schoolsNumber of secondary schools that are full or have one or more pupils in excess of school capacity2016/172122015/162112014/15221Source: School Capacity survey

Pupil Exclusions: Wallasey

Ms Angela Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many pupils have been excluded from primary schools in Wallasey constituency in each of the last five academic years.

Ms Angela Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many pupils have been excluded from secondary schools in Wallasey constituency in each of the last five academic years.

Nick Gibb: Statistics on exclusion are not available at constituency level.The National Statistics release ‘Permanent and fixed-period exclusions in England 2016 to 2017’ includes information on the number and rate of permanent and fixed period exclusions. The full release is available here: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/permanent-and-fixed-period-exclusions-in-england-2016-to-2017.Information for local authorities by academic year is available in the Underlying data section of the release, in the file “national_region_la_school_data_exc1617.csv”.

Pupil Premium

Bill Wiggin: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment he has made of whether the Pupil Premium is being used to supplement core funding.

Nick Gibb: The pupil premium is additional funding that schools are allocated to help support pupils from financially disadvantaged family backgrounds and those who are currently looked after or who have left care through adoption or other routes. We give schools flexibility over how they spend this funding, as they are best placed to determine how to use it most effectively to support those pupils who it is intended to benefit. We hold schools to account for their use of the pupil premium through a specific focus in Ofsted inspections and through analysis of school performance tables on the progress and attainment of disadvantaged pupils.While it is for schools to decide how to use the totality of their funding to support the education of their pupils, we require all local authority maintained schools to publish details online about how much pupil premium funding they have been allocated, the ways in which that funding has been spent and the impact this has had on eligible pupils.We also encourage schools, when planning their strategy for use of the pupil premium, to draw on high quality research evidence about effective and cost effective approaches to increasing the progress and attainment of eligible pupils. This is reflected in the work of the Education Endowment Foundation, which has received £137 million of Government funding to identify what works to improve disadvantaged pupils’ academic progress.

Apprentices: Taxation

Bill Wiggin: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps he is taking to review the effectiveness of the apprenticeship levy on primary schools.

Anne Milton: As with other parts of the public sector, the Department for Education (DfE) will be monitoring the uptake of apprenticeships by the school workforce. Public sector bodies in scope of the public sector apprenticeships target - including primary schools - are required to annually publish and report to DfE on the number of apprenticeship starts in their workforce. The first reports (covering the period 1 April 2017 – 31 March 2018) will be published later in the Autumn. In June 2018, we published updated guidance for schools on apprenticeships to support them in getting the most from our reforms: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/apprenticeships-reforms-guide-for-schools. This includes case studies of good practice, myth-busting frequently asked questions and an up-to-date list of apprenticeship standards for schools to use.A range of new apprenticeship standards for the school workforce are now available, including for trainee teachers, teaching assistants and school business managers.

Special Educational Needs: Finance

Bill Wiggin: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps he is taking to ensure that higher needs funding for people with additional educational needs is targeted effectively.

Nadhim Zahawi: The government has reformed the funding for children and young people with high needs to make it fairer, by introducing a new national funding formula for high needs. The formula takes into account an up to date assessment of the level of need in each area.Allocations to local authorities in 2018-19 were calculated on the basis of the national funding formula, and provisional allocations for 2019-20 can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/national-funding-formula-tables-for-schools-and-high-needs-2019-to-2020.The department is monitoring the impact of the national funding formula on local authority spending decisions, and are keeping the overall amount of funding for high needs under review.

Foster Care: Merseyside

Ms Angela Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what estimate he has made of the number of foster carers in (a) Merseyside and (b) Wirral in each of the last 10 years.

Nadhim Zahawi: This is a matter for Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector, Amanda Spielman. I have asked her to write to the hon. Member and a copy of her reply will be placed in the Libraries of both Houses.

Foster Care: Merseyside

Ms Angela Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps he is taking to increase the number of foster carers in Merseyside.

Nadhim Zahawi: It is crucial that there are enough foster parents with the right skills in the right areas to meet the diverse needs of looked-after children.‘Fostering Better Outcomes’ sets out how local authorities could improve their recruitment efforts by considering greater cooperation and joint recruitment, testing their approach to initial enquiries and reviewing the demographics to which they appeal during recruitment. We have committed to providing seed funding for fostering services to introduce new or expanded collaborative approaches across fostering, which includes sufficiency planning.We have also committed to exploring how technology could give us a more accurate picture of capacity to have an impact on targeted recruitment both nationally and locally.Alongside this, we will work with Ofsted to identify whether existing national data collection and insight from inspection reports have an impact on improved sufficiency planning to inform strategic recruitment.

Teachers: Performance Appraisal

Peter Aldous: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to his Department's guidance entitled Teacher appraisal and capability: A model policy, published on 22 May 2012, what steps his Department has taken to ensure that teachers' appraisals are carried out in accordance with the criteria set down in that guidance.

Nick Gibb: Schools are autonomous institutions, run by the headteacher, under the control of the governing body, which has responsibility for staffing matters within the school, which include appraisal and capability procedures.The Department has no role in determining the process used by the governing body. The governing body must adhere to its legal obligations as set out in The Education (School Teachers’ Appraisal) (England) Regulations 2012, which are mandatory for maintained schools and local authorities. They give schools and local authorities the freedom to design appraisal policies that suit their own individual circumstances.The Department has issued a model policy as an optional resource for schools and others, to which they can refer to as they wish, as they review and develop their own policies.The Department has also published staffing and employment advice for schools which includes more information on appraisals. The advice can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/staffing-and-employment-advice-for-schools.

Children: Day Care

Tulip Siddiq: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to his Department's publication entitled 30 hours free childcare: evaluation of the national rollout, published on 11 September 2018, support his Department plans to provide the 39 per cent of childcare providers who took part in the evaluation and reported a reduction in their profit or surplus due to the extended hours.

Tulip Siddiq: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to his Department's publication, Evaluation of the first year of the national rollout of 30 hours free childcare, published in September 2018, whether he plans to provide additional funding to ensure that childcare providers do not suffer a loss in profit or report that they are only breaking even as a result of offering extended hours of childcare.

Nadhim Zahawi: By 2019-20 we will be spending around £6 billion on childcare support – a record amount. This includes around £1 billion extra a year to deliver 30 hours of free childcare and fund the increase in hourly rates that we introduced in April 2017. Our average funding rates are based on the department’s ‘Review of Childcare Costs’ which was described as “thorough and wide ranging” by the National Audit Office.More than 340,000 children have benefitted from our 30 hours offer over its first year.The childcare market is a mixed economy and different providers have different business models. Providers do not have to offer the 30 hours entitlement if they do not wish to. This year one evaluation demonstrates that, of the sample of providers offering 30 hours, the majority either had no change in their profit or surplus or actually increased their profits. The latest Ofsted data from March 2018 showed that the number of non-domestic providers has remained stable.We have worked with early years partners to provide materials and support to help childcare providers remain sustainable and develop their businesses. In addition, earlier this year we allocated a total of £7.7 million to 147 local authorities through our Delivery Support Fund. This funding was to support authorities to work with their local providers to ensure sustainable delivery of 30 hours and included funding to provide specific business support.We will use the findings from the year one evaluation to support future delivery of 30 hours. This month we announced a year extension to our Childcare Works contract and will continue to work with them to support local authorities and childcare providers to deliver the government entitlements, including 30 hours free childcare.We are currently undertaking work to review delivery costs and this report is another useful addition to our evidence base.

Children: Day Care

Tulip Siddiq: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps he is taking to ensure that 30 hours free childcare is (a) flexible and (b) free of additional charges for those who are eligible.

Nadhim Zahawi: We want to ensure that 30 hours free childcare is flexible and meets parental need. That is why the offer can be ‘stretched’, by taking fewer hours per week over more than 38 weeks of the year to cover term-time and the school holidays. For example, 23 hours could be offered over 48 weeks of the year and can be delivered at weekends. We are also encouraging partnerships between providers to support flexible provision. Our operational guidance emphasises that children should be able to take their free hours as part of continuous provision and providers should avoid artificial breaks in the day wherever possible.We are clear that government funding intends to deliver 30 hours of high quality childcare and that providers are able to charge parents for additional extras such as meals or consumables. These charges cannot be a condition of a place and providers should ensure that their charging policies are transparent, so parents can make informed decisions on their choice of childcare.Evidence from the evaluation of the first year of national rollout of 30 hours free childcare, showed that 68% of providers offering the extended hours did not change their parent paid fees or introduce or increase additional charges because of these hours.We have announced a year extension to our delivery contractor, Childcare Works, and will continue to work with them to monitor the delivery of 30 hours free childcare in the second year of national rollout.

Carillion: Apprentices

Stephanie Peacock: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many former Carillion apprentices have been made redundant in (a) Barnsley and (b) South Yorkshire.

Anne Milton: The Education and Skills Funding Agency wrote to all MPs in January shortly after Carillion went into liquidation, to inform them how many Carillion apprentices were living in their constituencies. At that time there were no apprentices enrolled by Carillion living or working in Barnsley or South Yorkshire.

Academies: Finance

Alex Sobel: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps his Department is taking to improve financial transparancy in academy trusts.

Nadhim Zahawi: The department requires a high level of transparency of academy trusts. All academy trusts must have an annual independent audit of their annual accounts by a registered statutory auditor and academy trusts must be open and transparent and publish their accounts. This is not a requirement of local authority maintained schools. Academy trusts must prepare annual accounts. This provides considerably more information than other schools and provides a far higher level of public scrutiny than is required of local authority schools. Their financial performance is instead summarised within the authorities’ accounts. In addition, academy trusts are audited externally to international auditing standards, again this is not required of local authority schools. The department also publishes the ‘Consolidated Annual Report and Accounts’, based on returns from all academies in England. The reports are available for public scrutiny at GOV.UK. The most recent report covering 2015/16 is available at:https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/academies-consolidated-annual-report-and-accounts-2015-to-2016. We aim to publish the report for 2016/17 in October.

Academies: Construction

Alex Sobel: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps his Department is taking to monitor and evaluate the work done by contractors on academy schools for quality assurance purposes.

Nadhim Zahawi: For capital projects delivered by the Department for Education, there is a structured process, with proven integrity, for ensuring that projects are procured and designed in accordance with the user’s operational needs. Contractors are also obliged to demonstrate how their designs meet the prescribed Output Specification. Independent Technical Advisers further give assurance by certifying that milestones are completed prior to payments being made to the contractors. In addition there is an agreed strategy of Post Occupancy Evaluation, to check user satisfaction and build quality at new or refurbished schools, once they are in use. Every school completed by the department is also subject to a Building Performance Evaluation, which includes energy and operational effectiveness assessment. For works delivered by academy trusts or other responsible bodies outside of the department’s programmes the contracting party will be responsible for ensuring contractor performance.

Breakfast Clubs: Nottinghamshire

Ben Bradley: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if he will provide a list of the organisations in Nottinghamshire that have been allocated funding for breakfast or lunch clubs over school holiday periods in each of the last five years.

Nadhim Zahawi: Earlier this year, we announced a programme of research and pilots to explore ways of supporting children from disadvantaged families to access free enrichment activities and healthy food during school holidays.This summer we awarded £2 million to seven organisations that supported programmes of free food and activities for disadvantaged children around the country. We have not published a list of the individual clubs and locations. However, a number of clubs were operating in Nottinghamshire as part of the 2018 pilot programme. They operated in the following locations: Bingham Children’s Centre and the Lifespring Church in New Ollerton.We will use the data and the information gathered during the 2018 pilots to help shape our plans for 2019, which will be announced later this year.

Teachers: Pay

Peter Kyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, for what reason his Department has not extended the eligibility for the teachers’ pay grant to sixth form colleges.

Anne Milton: The school teachers’ pay grant provides financial support to maintained schools (including 16-19 maintained schools). These schools must follow the School Teachers’ Pay and Conditions Document, to help them implement the pay award.We confirmed that, in order to maintain funding parity between maintained schools and academies, we would mirror the grant so that it covers all academies. This includes sixth form colleges that have converted to become 16-19 academies.All teachers are equally important to us. However, the further education sector (which includes sixth form colleges) has a different legal status and relationship to the government when compared with academies.Sixth form colleges are private sector institutions, independent of government.

Children: Day Care

Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of allocating unused monies from the free 15 hours childcare offer for disadvantaged two-year-olds, to develop an intensive programme of home visiting focused on improving school readiness.

Nadhim Zahawi: Local authorities must fund childcare providers to deliver all the early years entitlements. Central government funds local authorities for the cost of delivering the entitlement for two-year-olds and the entitlements for three- and four-year-olds through the Dedicated Support Grant (DSG), based on take-up according to an annual census. It is the responsibility of local authorities to spend that funding according to the DSG conditions of grant. We agree that the home learning environment is hugely important and that is why the Secretary of State for Education has set an ambition to halve by 2028 the number of children that finish their reception year still without the early communication and reading skills they need to thrive. This will mean supporting parents to help their child’s early language development, and contributions across society; with businesses, the media, the voluntary sector, and our tech industry forming a coalition to help take this work forward. This will commence with a summit this autumn.

Teachers: Stress

Bridget Phillipson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether his Department plans to assess the effect of work-related stress on the retention of teaching staff; and if he will make a statement.

Nick Gibb: Schools have a 'duty of care' to protect the health, safety and welfare of all their employees. The Stevenson/Farmer Review states that public sector employers should support employee wellbeing. The Department is currently considering evidence about teachers’ wellbeing and will consider what more can usefully be done to support the sector. In the Transforming Children and Young People’s Mental Health green paper the Department set out plans to support schools to put in place designated senior mental health leads.The Department is developing a strategy to drive recruitment and boost retention of teachers, working closely with the sector, teaching unions and professional bodies. This strategy will cover a wide range of areas including stripping away unnecessary workload, clarifying the accountability system and providing tailored recruitment support for schools. As part of the strategy, the impact of work-related stress on teacher retention will be considered. In addition, the Workload Reduction Toolkit was published in July 2018 and provides accessible materials, including practical advice, tools and case studies that school leaders, teachers and other staff can use to address workload issues in their school.

European Baccalaureate

Layla Moran: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps he is taking to allow (a) the Europa School, Culham, Oxfordshire and (b) other schools in England to offer the European Baccalaureate after 2021.

Nadhim Zahawi: European School regulations state that the European Baccalaureate can only be offered by European Schools and Accredited European Schools, which must be located in EU member states. We are working closely with the Department for Exiting the European Union to make sure that we fully understand the risks and opportunities that EU exit presents.

Academies: Nottingham

Stella Creasy: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, pursuant to the Answer of 23 July 2018 to Question 167263 on Academies: Private Finance Initiative, for what reason the four academy schools in Nottingham were not included in that list.

Nick Gibb: If the hon. Member for Walthamstow provides the names and addresses of the four academy schools in Nottingham that have been missed off the list, the Department will provide a further response.

Brain: Injuries

Chris Bryant: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what the requirements for training teachers how to (a) identify and (b) treat acquired brain injury are.

Chris Bryant: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what estimate he has made of the number of incidents of concussion in schools in each of the last five years.

Nadhim Zahawi: It is important that children with medical conditions, such as acquired brain injury, are supported to receive a full education.To be awarded qualified teacher status, trainees must meet the Teachers’ Standards, which include a requirement that they adapt teaching to meet the strengths and needs of all pupils. The performance of all existing teachers in maintained schools must be assessed every year against the Teachers' Standards. It is the responsibility of school leaders to determine the training needs of their staff, within their approach to school improvement, professional development and performance management.Under Section 100 of the Children and Families Act 2014, governing boards are required to make arrangements to support pupils with medical conditions and to have regard to statutory guidance. The guidance is available at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/supporting-pupils-at-school-with-medical-conditions--3, and covers a range of areas including staff training. Staff training is critical in enabling school staff to provide the support needed to pupils with medical conditions. The statutory guidance is clear that governing boards should ensure that any member of school staff providing support to a pupil with medical needs has received suitable training. It also states that training should be sufficient to ensure that staff are competent and have confidence in their ability to support pupils with medical conditions, and to fulfil the requirements as set out in individual healthcare plans.The information requested on number of incidents of concussion in schools is not held centrally.

Schools: Hospitals

Jonathan Ashworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how much funding his Department has allocated from the public purse to hospital education in each financial year since 2013-14.

Jonathan Ashworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what recent assessment his Department has made of the adequacy of funding for hospital education in the financial years since 2013-14.

Jonathan Ashworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care on funding for hospital education since financial year 2013-14.

Nadhim Zahawi: Funding for hospital education is included in a local authority’s high needs funding allocation, which also supports other forms of alternative provision for pupils who cannot receive education in mainstream schools, and provision for children and young people with special education needs and disabilities. It is for local authorities to determine how to spend their high needs funding on the children and young people who require specialist provision, including education for those in hospital.The following table shows the total high needs funding allocated to local authorities since 2013-14. High needs block of the dedicated schools grant (DSG)2013-14£4.97 billion2014-15£5.18 billion2015-16£5.25 billion2016-17£5.30 billion2017-18£5.83 billion2018-19£5.99 billion In 2017-18, local authorities planned to spend £72 million of their high needs funding on hospital education.Since 2018-19, the amount of high needs funding each local authority receives is determined by the high needs national funding formula. The national funding formula includes an amount for hospital education, which is currently on the basis of 2017-18 planned spending, plus a 0.5% uplift in 2018-19 and a 1% uplift in 2019-20. The hospital education funding in 2018-19 totals £73 million and the provisional hospital education funding in 2019-20 is £76 million.[1]It is our intention to replace this reliance on local authorities’ planned spending in 2017-18 with a formulaic hospital education factor that takes into account both local authority spending data and NHS patient data, therefore better responding to the number of patients needing education in each local area.The Secretary of State has conversations with other Cabinet Ministers, on a number of issues, on a regular basis. Department for Education officials have worked with officials in the Department for Health and Social Care and the NHS to develop a hospital education factor in the national funding formula. [1] The increase between years also includes additional funding, provided as a result of the process in which local authorities can apply if there has been a change in the medical provision in their area.

Schools: Hospitals

Jonathan Ashworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps his Department is taking with the Department of Health and Social Care, to improve the education of children and young people in hospital.

Nick Gibb: On 16 March the Department published ‘Creating Opportunity for All: Our Vision for Alternative Provision’. This set out the Department’s vision to ensure that all children in alternative provision (AP), including those placed in AP for reasons related to their health, receive a high quality education.The Department is working collaboratively with local authorities, schools and the wider AP sector, including hospital schools, to build a strong evidence base of effective practice to raise standards. The Department is developing and sharing effective practice within AP, including ensuring AP settings can access school improvement resources and launching a dedicated AP Innovation Fund. The Department is also strengthening partnership arrangements for commissioning and delivering AP, including clarifying the role of schools, alternative providers and local authorities in delivering high quality AP.

Special Educational Needs

Gill Furniss: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many SEN places are available in (a) Sheffield, and (b) the UK.

Nadhim Zahawi: The information requested is not held centrally by the department.The Children and Families Act (2014) requires local authorities to work with parents, young people and providers to keep the provision for children and young people with SEN and disabilities under review, including its sufficiency.

Pre-school Education

Rosie Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what the average amount of time taken is for Ofsted to respond to applications to open new pre-schools.

Nadhim Zahawi: This is a matter for Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector, Amanda Spielman. I have asked her to write to the hon. Member and a copy of her reply will be placed in the libraries of both Houses.

Social Mobility Commission: Public Appointments

Lyn Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many final interviews for the post of Social Mobility Commissioner took place on (a) 17, (b) 18, and (c) 19 September.

Nadhim Zahawi: The recruitment process for the Social Mobility Commissioners is currently ongoing however, the department can release the information requested once the appointments process has concluded.

Children: Day Care

Tracy Brabin: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, for what reasons there are fewer children registered for 30 hours of free childcare in the autumn 2018 term than there were in the summer 2018 term.

Nadhim Zahawi: The decline in numbers in the autumn term 2018 is an expected effect driven by four-year olds entering reception and no longer being able to use their code for the 30 hours policy. In autumn term 2018, there were 254,136 codes issued which is an increase from autumn term 2017 where there were 224,885 codes issued. For the autumn term 2018, to be eligible for 30 hours free childcare a child will have to have turned three on or before the 31st August 2018. Most children who had turned four by 31st August will be in a reception place instead which results in less children with issued codes for the autumn 2018 term compared to the summer 2018 term. We publish termly experimental statistics showing the number of children in a place. The full publication, which shows local authority and regional level breakdowns, is available here:https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/30-hours-free-childcare-eligibility-codes-issued-and-validated.

Teachers: Qualifications

Angela Rayner: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to table 7.3 of his Department's September 2018 publication Analysis of teacher supply, retention, and mobility, whether his Department holds information on (a) how many teachers gained qualified teacher status in each region of England in each year from 2010 to 2016 and (b) what proportion of those teachers remained in service one year after qualification.

Nick Gibb: Figures showing the number of final year teacher trainees awarded Qualified Teacher Status (QTS) by the region of their ITT provider in each year from 2013 onwards can be found in the ITT Performance Profiles statistical series, available here:[1] https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/statistics-teacher-training.Information on the proportion of teachers who enter service as a Newly Qualified Teacher (NQT) in the state-funded school sector in England immediately after gaining QTS that remain in service in the following year is available in the online application published alongside the Teachers analysis compendium 4: Analysis of teacher supply, retention and mobility publication as referenced in the question, with figures at regional level extracted from the application provided in the table below. Table 1 Proportion of teachers who entered service as an NQT immediately after gaining QTS that are still in service one year later, by year of gaining QTS and region, 2010 – 2016 inclusive[2]Region2010201120122013201420152016North East88%83%86%84%86%85%84%North West83%84%85%85%83%85%85%Yorkshire & Humber85%88%85%87%86%85%85%East Midlands87%89%90%89%88%89%88%West Midlands85%89%87%89%87%87%84%East of England86%91%89%90%88%88%87%Inner London81%85%86%86%84%82%82%Outer London86%88%87%85%87%85%84%South East87%89%87%87%86%86%85%South West83%87%87%88%87%87%84%[1] Data for 2013/14 can be calculated from Table 6a of the provider-level tables for 2013/14. Data for the proportion of those awarded QTS in 2014/15 are in Figure 5 of the main text for 2014/15. Data for 2015/16 are in Figure 8 of the main text for 2015/16. Data for 2016/17 are in Table 9 of the provider-level tables for 2016/17.[2] Note some trainees gaining QTS will not immediately enter service as an NQT in the state-funded sector in England but may enter the state-funded school sector at a later date.

Teachers: Pensions

Angela Rayner: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what estimate he has made of the cost to schools of increasing the employer contribution to the Teachers’ Pension Scheme in each of the next five fiscal years.

Nick Gibb: The Department for Education has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Teachers: Pensions

Angela Rayner: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if his Department will meet the cost of increasing the employers’ contribution to the Teachers’ Pension Scheme.

Nick Gibb: The Department for Education has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Adventure Learning Academy Trust and Bright Tribe Multi-academy Trust

Angela Rayner: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if he will place in the Library a copy the Education and Skills Funding Agency report Multi-Academy Trust Review of Bright Tribe and Adventure Learning Academies Trust: Final Report, published in March 2016.

Nadhim Zahawi: The purpose of Multi Academy Trust reviews conducted by the Education and Skills Funding Agency (ESFA) is to obtain assurance and to provide trusts with an opportunity to improve their governance. Such reviews are routine, but require openness by both sides and it is not the policy of the agency to routinely publish or otherwise make public the outputs of the work. However, the ESFA published a Financial Management and Governance Report in November 2016 of the two trusts in question and this is available at:https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/financial-management-and-governance-review-bright-tribe-trust-and-adventure-learning-academies-trust.

Department for Education: Pay

Jo Stevens: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many and what proportion of directly employed civil servants in his Department earn under £50,000 per annum.

Anne Milton: The department and its executive agencies have 4,544 staff earning a gross basic salary under £50,000 per annum, which represents 73% of the workforce. This information is based on data as of September 2018.

Nurses: Students

Paula Sherriff: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many mental health nursing students have started degree apprenticeships in the 2018-19 academic year.

Anne Milton: In the 2017/18 academic year reported to date (from August 2017 to April 2018), 260 apprenticeship starts were recorded for the standard ‘Registered Nurse’. This is the level 6 degree apprenticeship approved for delivery on 9 May 2017. Mental health nursing remains an optional element within the nursing apprenticeships. Additionally, there have been 640 apprenticeship starts reported to date (from August 2017 to April 2018) for the standard ‘Nursing Associate’ (level 5 apprenticeship standard, approved for delivery on 20 November 2017; note that we class apprenticeships at level 6 and above as ‘degree-level’). There were no starts on these standards in the 2016/17 academic year. Full final year data for the 2017/18 academic year will be available in November 2018 and data covering 2018/19 will be available in January 2019. In England, there have been 64,830 apprenticeship starts in the Health, Public Services and Care sector subject area reported to date in the first three quarters of the 2017/18 academic year (August 2017 to April 2018). This data can be accessed at the following link: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/further-education-and-skills-statistical-first-release-sfr. We want to increase the number of nursing apprenticeships and now have a complete apprentice pathway from entry level to postgraduate advanced clinical practice in nursing. This will support people from all backgrounds to enter a nursing career in the National Health Service (NHS). We are working closely with employers, Health Education England and ministers in the Department of Health and Social Care to make sure the NHS is fully supported to recruit apprentices, both in nursing and in a range of various occupations.

Education: Admissions

Stephanie Peacock: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what recent discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for the Home Department on ensuring that adult survivors of modern slavery are able to access further and higher education.

Anne Milton: We recognise that modern slavery is extremely serious, and we strive to ensure that our policies are able to support survivors to move forward in their lives. While the Home Office is responsible for determining an individual’s immigration status, the Department for Education is responsible for setting the criteria for accessing 16-19 and adult (19+) education and higher education funding. The criteria for accessing 16-19 and adult education are set out in funding rules, which further education providers refer to when assessing eligibility. Depending on individual circumstances, survivors of modern slavery who meet the eligibility criteria will be able to access further education. Officials at the Department for Education, working with Home Office officials, regularly keep these rules under review. They do everything possible to ensure that those who are entitled to access further education can do so without unnecessary bureaucracy. Similarly, eligibility for higher education student support is set out in the relevant regulations. It depends on a number of factors, including immigration status. Generally, to be eligible for higher education student support, a student should be resident in England, have ‘settled’ status or have a recognised connection with the UK and have been a resident of the UK and Islands (Channel Islands and the Isle of Man) for the three years prior to the start of the course. Residence in the UK and Islands must not have been wholly or mainly for the purpose of receiving full-time education.

Children: Day Care

Tracy Brabin: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how much his Department has spent from the public purse on (a) advertising and (b) marketing the 30 hours of free childcare in (a) autumn 2017, (b) spring 2018, (c) summer 2018 and (d) autumn 2018.

Nadhim Zahawi: As of the 30 September 2018, we have spent £268,842.90 on advertising and marketing the 30 hours free childcare offer since it launched on the 1 September 2017. This includes paid for social media advertising, flyers and hosting information about the offer on the Childcare Choices website. The social media communications has been particularly successful, reaching more than 5.3 million people.

Church Commissioners

Churches: Equality

Stephen Doughty: To ask the right hon. Member for Meriden, representing the Church Commissioners, what steps are being taken to promote greater diversity by (a) gender (b) ethnicity and (c) sexual orientation in leadership positions within the Church.

Dame Caroline Spelman: The Church Commissioners have indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Church Commissioners

Frank Field: To ask the Honourable Member for Meriden, representing the Church Commissioners, which AGMs the Commissioners have attended in relation to companies in which shares are held by the Commissioners in each of the last three years.

Dame Caroline Spelman: In 2016 the Church Commissioners established an engagement team in conjunction with the Church of England Pensions Board, reflecting the importance of engagement in the application of our ethical investment policies. The engagement team has responsibility for voting our shareholdings in publicly listed companies, preparing ethical exclusion lists, and engaging companies in which we are shareholders on issues related to our ethical policies. During 2017 they undertook 112 engagements on behalf of the Church Commissioners, which ranged from letter-based contact to regular meetings with Chairs or Board members. The most significant proportion of face-to-face meetings remained with companies in the extractive industries. A list of company AGMs attended by the Church Commissioners’ Engagement Team in 2016, 2017 and 2018 (to date) is below. 2016ANGLO AMERICAN PLCBHP BILLITON PLCBP PLC, LONDONCentrica plc ExxonGLENCORE PLCOCADO GROUPRIO TINTO PLCTULLOW OIL2017ANGLO AMERICAN PLCAntofagasta plcBP PLCExxonGlencore plcRIO TINTO PLC2018ANGLO AMERICAN PLCBP PLCCentrica plcEXXONGlencore plcMillennium & Copthorne Hotels plcRIO TINTO PLCRoyal Bank of Scotland Group plcRoyal Dutch ShellWPP plc.

Housing Estates: Sales

Frank Field: To ask the Honourable Member for Meriden, representing the Church Commissioners, which housing estates (a) in the Greater London area and (b) elsewhere have been sold by the Church Commissioners; and whether guarantees were sought that those estates would remain in social housing ownership.

Dame Caroline Spelman: The Church Commissioners have indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

Water: Phosphates

Rachael Maskell: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 10 September to Question 170381, what the level of phosphates is in the water supply for each regional water authority.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: This information is not available, as there is no requirement for water companies to report levels of phosphate in treated water supplies. There is no prescribed standard or specific monitoring requirement for phosphates in our national legislation for drinking water standards, or in the Drinking Water Directive; or guideline value in the World Health Organisation guidelines on drinking water quality standards.

Fisheries: Migrant Workers

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether he plans to introduce a short-term visa scheme for non-EEA nationals to enter the UK fishing industry following the introduction of a similar visa scheme for non-EEA national farm workers; and if he will make a statement.

George Eustice: The Government will set its proposals for the future immigration system in due course.

Radioactive Waste: Penarth

Dr David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether there have been any reported cases of the dumping of nuclear waste off the coast of Penarth.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: Regulation of the disposal of radioactive material off the coast of Wales is a devolved matter for Natural Resources Wales and the Welsh Government.

Dogs: Animal Breeding

Dr David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether he plans to investigate the use of the leptospirosis vaccination on breeding dogs; and if he will make a statement.

David Rutley: The UK’s Veterinary Medicines Directorate works closely with the EMA and other similar agencies throughout Europe to monitor the safety and efficacy of all veterinary medicines, including leptospirosis vaccines. These vaccines have been reviewed and the benefits of use of these vaccines in preventing serious infection continue to outweigh the risks.

Dogs: Animal Breeding

Dr David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what plans he has to strengthen current regulations on the maximum number of litters that a breeding dog may have during its lifetime; and what measures he intends to put in place so that breeders are legally responsible for the welfare of breeding dogs once they have stopped breeding.

David Rutley: The Animal Welfare (Licensing of Activities Involving Animals) (England) Regulations 2018 came into force on 1 October this year, and require that no breeding dog is mated if it is under 12 months’ of age; gives birth to no more than one litter every twelve months; gives birth to no more than six litters in total; and is not mated if it has had two litters delivered by caesarean section. The maximum number of dogs that a breeding dog may have during its lifetime was agreed with key animal welfare organisations and veterinary groups prior to the new regulations being drafted. As with any dog it is the responsibility of the owner to ensure that the welfare needs of a retired breeding dog are met, as required under the Animal Welfare Act 2006. There are no proposals to make any changes to the regulations at this very early stage. The regulations are subject to review within 5 years.

Plastics: Waste

Steve McCabe: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what the timeframe is for the publication of the consultation document on a ban on the sale of plastic (a) straws, (b) stirrers and (c) stemmed cotton buds.

Steve McCabe: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether PLA biodegradable straws will be included in the proposed consultation on a ban on single use plastic products.

Steve McCabe: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment he has made of the potential effect of a ban on the sale of (a) plastic straws, (b) plastic stirrers and (c) plastic-stemmed cotton buds on wholesalers that stock those items.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: This Government is a world leader in tackling plastic waste. The Prime Minister launched the Department’s 25 Year Environment Plan on 11 January and pledged to eliminate all avoidable plastic waste. At the Commonwealth Heads of Government Summit in April, the Prime Minister announced that subject to a consultation to be launched by Defra later this year, there will be a ban on the sale/supply of plastic straws, drink stirrers and plastic-stemmed cotton buds in England. Work is underway with a consultation due to be launched soon. Policy proposals will be subject to an impact assessment. The Government is aware of the interest in biodegradable plastics. We will seek further evidence in our consultation to check whether assumptions on recyclability and degradation are correct. We also welcome views on whether it is likely that technical innovations in compostable or biodegradable plastics might improve their environmental or economic value.

Food: Labelling

Gill Furniss: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what recent assessment he has made of the adequacy of the enforcement of food labelling laws.

David Rutley: Enforcement of these Regulations is undertaken by trading standards and local authorities. Person(s) found guilty of an allergens offence may be liable to (since 2012) unlimited fines (England and Wales) and criminal sanctionsDefra, Food Standards Agency and DHSC are working together to review what changes are needed to food labelling, including how that may impact enforcement activities.

Air Pollution

Matthew Pennycook: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if his Department will include the World Health Organisation’s limit for fine particulate matter PM2.5 in the upcoming Environment Bill.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: In our recent draft Clean Air Strategy consultation, we committed to halve the population living in areas with concentrations of fine particulate matter above WHO guideline levels (10 μg/m3) by 2025. We are the first major economy in the world to adopt targets based on WHO guidelines, going far beyond EU requirements. The Clean Air Strategy consultation has now closed and we will set out next steps in due course.

Air Pollution

Matthew Pennycook: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what plans he is putting in place to protect (a) children, (b) the elderly, (c) people with a (i) lung and (ii) heart condition and (d) other vulnerable people from air pollution.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: Our recently published draft Clean Air Strategy sets out our proposals to reduce the emission of five regulated air pollutants, including PM2.5, which has the strongest evidence of harm to human health. The proposals in our the draft Strategy will result in reductions to PM2.5 concentrations which will halve the population living in areas with concentrations above the World Health Organisation’s (WHO) annual guideline of 10μgm-3, making us the first major developed economy to recognise the guideline. This ambition goes beyond EU requirements and has been welcomed by the WHO. The measures in our draft Strategy will reduce concentrations of damaging pollution for all people, including those who may be more vulnerable to the effects of air pollution. Defra has consulted on the draft Strategy and is currently considering the responses received from a wide range of interested parties, including views about adoption of WHO guideline limits and how best to engage with those who may be more vulnerable to the effects of air pollution. An updated Strategy published in due course. Our proposals included additional powers for local authorities to tackle locally-important sources of air pollution, including around schools, care homes and healthcare facilities, if the local authority deems this appropriate. Additionally, my officials are working with healthcare organisations to develop bespoke guidance for those who may be more vulnerable to the effects of air pollution, including children, older people and those with cardiopulmonary conditions. In March 2017, Defra, Public Health England and the Local Government Association, jointly published an updated resource “Air Quality: briefing for directors of public health”, which enables further action at the local level.

Exhaust Emissions: Cars

Matthew Pennycook: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether the new Clean Air Strategy will include proposals to (a) tackle idling by cars and (b) raise awareness of the harmful levels of pollution inside cars.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: We set out our proposed approach to address air pollution from road traffic in the Clean Air Strategy Consultation and are currently analysing the responses. It is an offence to leave an engine running unnecessarily while the vehicle is stationary on a road and local authorities have powers to issue fixed penalty notices to drivers who commit such an offence.

Rights of Way: Portsmouth

Stephen Morgan: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps he is taking to ensure that Portsmouth City Council bring forward an Order for a restricted Byway at the Camber.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: Rights of way orders are processed by the Planning Inspectorate (PINS) on behalf of the Secretary of State. Following referral to PINS last year, it has confirmed that following a schedule 14 appeal against Portsmouth City Council’s refusal to make an order, a decision was issued on 21 February and the appeal was allowed. The council was therefore directed to make an order; however in line with normal procedures no time limit for the making of the order was given in the decision. A link to the decision can be found here:https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/683991/fps_z1775_14a_2_decision.pdf

Food: Labelling

Mary Creagh: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what recent assessment he has made of the adequacy of labelling for non-prepackaged fresh food.

David Rutley: We take the provision of information to consumers extremely seriously and it is essential that all UK consumers have complete trust in the food they are eating.Defra is working closely with the Food Standards Agency and the Department for Health and Social Care to urgently review our approach to food labelling with the aim of strengthening the current allergen labelling framework. We are also holding talks with the Devolved Administrations to see what approach they may wish to take, as this is a devolved matter.

Bottles: Recycling

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment he has made of the merits of a nationwide bottle return scheme.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: The Government will assess the costs and benefits of a deposit return scheme as part of its consultation later this year.

Food: Imports

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether his Department plans to suspend food controls in the event of delays to imports of perishable foods after the UK leaves the EU.

David Rutley: We are putting in place systems and processes for checks and controls of animals, plants and animal and plant products which maintain our current biosecurity standards and risk profile while minimizing any delays at the border. We have no plans to suspend food controls in the event of delays. The technical notices released in September provide further detail on our plans in the event of leaving the EU at the end of March without a deal.

Department for Exiting the European Union

Brexit

Tom Brake: To ask the Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union, what assessment the Government has made of the revocability of Article 50 of the Treaty on European Union.

Chris Heaton-Harris: The Government has been clear that as a matter of firm policy we will not revoke Article 50. A clear majority of the electorate voted to leave the EU and we must respect both the will of the British people, and the democratic process which delivered this result.We will leave the European Union on 29 March 2019.

EU Nationals

Tom Brake: To ask the Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union, if the Government will legislate unilaterally and immediately to provide full rights to EU citizens.

Suella Braverman: Citizens’ rights has been our first priority since the very beginning of this process.While the Government is preparing for a range of scenarios, including the unlikely event that we reach March 2019 without agreeing a deal, the Prime Minister stated to EU citizens on 21 September “I want to be clear with you that even in the event of no deal your rights will be protected. You are our friends, our neighbours, our colleagues. We want you to stay.”We will set out all the details shortly. We are also urging the EU and all its member states to step up and give UK citizens on the continent the same reassurances.

Speaker's Committee for the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority

Parental Leave

Jim Shannon: To ask the hon. Member for Broxbourne, representing the Speaker's Committee for the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority, what assessment has been made of the effect of IPSA's family leave policy on the (a) provision of adequate office arrangements for Members and (b)(i) physical and (ii) mental health of parliamentary staff returning from such leave.

Mr Charles Walker: I have asked the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority to reply.Letter from Marcial Boo, chief executive of IPSA, 10 October 2018:The Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority (IPSA) provides Family Leave Guidance in relation to staff employed by MPs, a copy of which can be found on our website at: http://www.theipsa.org.uk/ipsa-for-mps/guidance.This document provides guidance on maternity leave, paternity leave, adoption leave, shared parental leave, KIT/SPLIT days and caring leave. This is not a policy, but guidance to MPs on the statutory entitlements. As the legal employers of their staff, MPs are responsible for matters of individual staffing arrangements, such as approving instances of family leave and ensuring that they comply with relevant employment legislation.As the document is guidance rather than a policy, and relates only to the statutory entitlements, we have not undertaken any specific assessment of its effects. However, IPSA encourages responsible employment and any necessary expenditure by MPs on the health and welfare of their staff, including their mental health. MPs can claim the cost of staff health and welfare costs, such as occupational health assessments, from their staffing budgets. We also undertake Equality Impact Assessments (EIA) in relation to major changes to our Scheme of MPs’ Business Costs and Expenses. We last undertook an EIA in March 2017 which concluded that changes proposed to our Scheme were likely to have a small positive impact on MPs’ staff in relation to pregnancy and maternity. A copy of that report can be found on our website at: http://www.theipsa.org.uk/publications/consultations/review-of-the-mps-scheme-of-business-costs-and-expenses.

Wales Office

Wales Office: Working Hours

Catherine West: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, what the contracted hours are for the highest paid member of staff in his Department.

Mims Davies: The highest paid member of staff at the Office of the Secretary of State for Wales is contracted to work a minimum of 42 hours.

Ministry of Justice

Disasters

Gloria De Piero: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what the timetable is for the Government response to the consultation on an independent public advocate.

Edward Argar: The consultation on the Independent Public Advocate closes on 3 December. We will publish a response to the consultation in the spring and will legislate when parliamentary time allows.

Crime: Victims

Gloria De Piero: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what estimate his Department has made of the cost to the public purse of the commitment set out in the victims strategy to improve the court environment for victims of crime.

Edward Argar: We have published the first cross-government Victims Strategy that makes clear our commitment to better support victims and witnesses during the court process. Improving the court environment for victims will be progressed as part of the Government and judiciary’s £1bn reform programme to transform our courts and tribunals system.

Personal Independence Payment: Appeals

Mr Roger Godsiff: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, if he will take (a) steps to recruit additional (i) judges and (ii) panel members and (b) other such steps to reduce the waiting time for personal independence payment appeal hearings at the Birmingham social security and child support tribunal.

Mr Roger Godsiff: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps his Department is taking to reduce the waiting period for personal independence payments tribunals in Birmingham; and what assessment has been made of the effect of the current waiting time on claimants.

Lucy Frazer: In order to respond to a general increase in appeal receipts, HM Courts & Tribunals Service (HMCTS) has been working with the Tribunal’s judiciary both to appoint additional judges and panel members, and to take forward initiatives with the potential to increase the capacity and performance of the Tribunal. The Tribunal panel hearing Personal Independence Payment (PIP) appeals is constituted of a judge, a medical member, and a disability qualified tribunal member. HMCTS has recently recruited 250 judges across the First-tier Tribunal; up to 125 disability-qualified members; and 226 medical members.Of these, to date, five judges; 19 medical members; and seven disability-qualified members, have been assigned to sit in the Birmingham Social Security and Child Support Tribunal.We are also reviewing - with the Tribunal’s judiciary - current listing practices to increase the number of cases listed on a Tribunal session.Waiting times are calculated from receipt of the appeal to its final disposal. An appeal is not necessarily disposed of at its first hearing. The final disposal decision on the appeal may be reached after an earlier hearing had been adjourned (which may be directed by the judge for a variety of reasons, such as to seek further evidence), or after an earlier hearing date had been postponed (again, for a variety of reasons, often at the request of the appellant). An appeal may also have been decided at an earlier date by the First-tier Tribunal, only for the case to have gone on to the Upper Tribunal, to be returned once again to the First-tier, for its final disposal.We are very sensitive to the needs of people waiting for Tribunal hearings with a wide range of physical and mental challenges. Tribunal staff, and judicial office holders, are trained accordingly, with HMCTS providing reasonable adjustments to give customers with disabilities equal access to information and services. Information on the HMCTS equality and diversity policy and handling of requests for reasonable adjustments is published on Gov.uk.If an expedited hearing is sought, or if the Tribunal identifies a case which may benefit from an expedited hearing, a judge (or caseworker acting under delegated powers and then within 14 days subject to an automatic right to be placed before a judge) will make a case management decision on the issue taking into account all the circumstances known about the case. Such decisions may be revised on application and are subject to appeal if an error of law is made.Latest figures indicate that since PIP was introduced, more than 3.1 million decisions have been made, and of these under 9% have been appealed and 4% have been overturned.

Wymott Prison: Crimes of Violence

Rosie Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what information his Department holds on a recent assault made on a prison officer at HMP Wymott involving a prisoner throwing boiling water at that officer; and what steps he is taking to protect prison officers from such assaults.

Rory Stewart: While I cannot comment on individual cases, I would like to reassure The hon. Member for West Lancashire, Rosie Cooper MP, and the prison officer involved that assaults on our hard-working staff will never be tolerated. Prisoners can expect to face sanctions and, for serious assaults, be investigated by the police. The Assaults on Emergency Workers (Offences) Act 2018 received Royal Assent on 13 September 2018. This doubles the maximum sentence for an assault on an emergency worker, including prison officers, that a criminal court may impose. Alongside our work with the police and CPS to prosecute such offences, to protect our prison staff we have invested in 5,600 body-worn cameras and are rolling out rigid-bar handcuffs. Early next year we will begin to equip every prison officer in the adult male prison estate with incapacitant spray – PAVA. PAVA can help to prevent serious harm to staff and prisoners alike, as well as being a tool to persuade prisoners in the act of violence to stop. Only prisons who have rolled out the key worker scheme – which is vital in building relationships between offenders and staff – will get PAVA. It will be a crucial step in our efforts to help reduce serious harm in prisons.

Prison and Probation Service: Contracts

Dr David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, which company has been awarded the contract for the HM Prison and Probation Service's Approvals and Compliance Team; and if he will publish the criteria for the tender of that contract.

Rory Stewart: The Approvals and Compliance Team work for Her Majesty’s Prison and Probation Service (HMPPS) and are directly employed staff. The team review the suitability of applicants where judgement is required as a result of the pre-appointment security vetting checks undertaken. The team comprises of a group of experienced Governors and staff from across HMPPS who are able to assess and evaluate the evidence and associated risks, making decisions about candidates in the context of the work they will undertake within HMPPS.

Harassment: Court Orders

Steve McCabe: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what guidance is available to magistrates’ courts on imposing restraining orders.

Lucy Frazer: Magistrates sit with legal advisers in court who advise them on the law. The framework for issuing restraining orders is set out in the Adult Court Bench Book, a digital copy of which is used by Magistrates sitting in criminal courts. The Bench Book is available publicly at https://www.judiciary.uk/publications/adult-court-bench-book-and-pronouncement-cards/ The framework is also reflected in the Sentencing Council Explanatory Materials which accompany the Magistrates’ Court Sentencing Guidelines - https://www.sentencingcouncil.org.uk/explanatory-material/item/ancillary-orders/21-restraining-orders/. All relevant individual Sentencing Guidelines include reference to the consideration of including a restraining order as an ancillary order on sentence. The subject of restraining orders will also be covered during Magistrates’ training where it is relevant to the subject matter in hand, for example in domestic abuse.

Harassment: Court Orders

Steve McCabe: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of introducing legislative proposals to ensure that it is not a reasonable excuse in defence of a charge of breaching a restraining order to assert that the order was not received because of a change of address.

Steve McCabe: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many times the CPS has been unable to pursue charges relating to the breach of a restraining order in each of the last five years because the person demonstrated a reasonable excuse of not having received notice of the order because they changed address.

Lucy Frazer: Information on how many times the CPS has been unable to pursue charges relating to the breach of a restraining order in these circumstances is not available and could only be obtained by manually searching CPS case files, which would incur disproportionate cost. There has, however, been an overall rise in prosecutions commenced for breaches of restraining orders, especially for orders made on acquittal. The defendant will usually be present in court when an order is made, following a guilty plea or when the defendant is acquitted or convicted at the end of a trial. In those circumstances it is not necessary for a written copy of the order to have been received by the defendant for him or her to be guilty of breaching it, even though in most cases a written copy of the order will be supplied and may be sent by post to the defendant. The Criminal Procedure Rules require a prosecutor to give the defendant advance notice of the terms of any proposed restraining order and the court must not make an order unless the defendant has had the opportunity to see what is proposed and to make representations. I will ask the Criminal Procedure Rule Committee to consider whether any changes are required.

Bail

Liz Saville Roberts: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many defendants were granted court bail prior to the commencement of their trial where the principal offence was (a) murder, (b) manslaughter, (c) robbery, (d) rape, (e) fraud and (f) violence against the person in each month of 2018 to date; and how many people on court bail in each category of offence absconded.

Rory Stewart: The numbers of defendants who were granted bail at the Crown Court from January to March 2018 for these offences and the numbers of those who failed to appear in court are set out in tables 1 and 2. For those granted bail at magistrates’ courts in the first three months of 2018, there was one recorded FTA. The data record failing to appear (FTA) as a general category. We do not collect data specifically on absconds. The circumstances and reason for each FTA is unknown. Not all FTAs are due to defendants absconding. There are many reasons for a FTA and absconding is just one of them.

Judges: Training

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, with reference to the document E/C.12/GBR/CO/5 12 June 2009, Consideration of Reports Submitted by States Parties Under Articles 16 and 17 of the Covenant, what steps the Government has taken to implement the recommendation that the UK take effective measures to increase awareness of economic, social and cultural rights among judges; and if he will make a statement.

Lucy Frazer: The UK Government responded to those United Nations recommendations as part of its 6th periodic report of 17 June 2014 to the United Nations under the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights. That report is publicly available on the United Nations’ website and also on GOV.UK at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/international-covenant-on-economic-social-and-cultural-rights-icescr-periodic-report. Paragraphs 13-15 at page 11 of the report address the recommendation on raising awareness of the Covenant. The UK Government has been giving effect to the United Nations International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights through a combination of legislation and administrative measures, with the aim of achieving progressively the full realisation of the rights recognised in the Covenant. Responsibility for training of the independent judiciary rests with the senior judiciary. Fair and equal treatment is regarded as a fundamental principle of administering justice and one which is embedded in the judicial oath. The Equal Treatment Bench Book is available electronically to every judge as a reference resource on equal treatment and diversity issues relating to protected characteristics.

Coroners: Armed Forces

Stephen Morgan: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether he has plans to bring forward legislative proposals for a duty on coroners to record whether an individual was a (a) veteran and (b) serving member of the armed forces.

Edward Argar: The Government’s approach is set out in its response to the current e-petition on the recording of veterans’ suicides. The response was published on 5 September 2018 and is available at https://petition.parliament.uk/petitions/225899.

Cabinet Office

Intelligence Services: Detainees

Tom Brake: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to the oral contribution of the Minister for Europe and the Americas of 2 July 2018, Official Report column 26, if the Government will hold a judge-led independent inquiry into the UK’s involvement in post-9/11 human rights abuses; and for what reason the Government did not update the House within 60 days of the publication of the Intelligence and Security Committee reports on detainee mistreatment and rendition.

Mr David Lidington: I refer the Honourable Gentleman to the answer given by the Minister of State for Europe and the Americas on 12 September 2018, (reference 171734). Under the Memorandum of Understanding agreed with the ISC, the Government aims to respond substantively to their reports within 60 days, but in this case it has informed the ISC that it has decided to take more time to give careful consideration to the issues set out in the Committee’s reports.

Infrastructure: Cybercrime

Jo Platt: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to the Answer of 14 September 2018 to Question 169876 on Infrastructure: Cybercrime, whether the number of successful cyber attacks launched against critical national infrastructure organisations is recorded centrally.

Mr David Lidington: The National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) records the number of incidents reported to it. The number of cybersecurity incidents recorded is unlikely to be representative of the numbers of attacks actually launched, as not all attacks may be detected or reported by the organisations affected. The government is committed to improving the quality of data available and making cybersecurity incidents easier to report.

Government Departments: Personal Records

Jo Platt: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many contracts the Government holds with private companies that handle citizens data.

Oliver Dowden: This information is not centrally held. For contracts which handle citizens data, authorities are required to follow the General Data Protection Regulation guidance as set out in Procurement Policy Note 02/18 at the following link: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/procurement-policy-note-0218-changes-to-data-protection-legislation-general-data-protection-regulation Since January 2011, details of central government contracts above the value of £10,000 are published on Contracts Finder. Contracts published prior to 26 February 2015 can be viewed at: https://data.gov.uk/data/contracts-finder-archive. Those published after 26 February 2015 can be viewed at: https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Search

Cabinet Office: Pay

Jo Stevens: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many and what proportion of directly employed civil servants in his Department earn under £50,000 per annum.

Oliver Dowden: At 30th September 2018, the number of directly employed civil servants in my Department who earn under £50,000 per annum was 3,811 or 66% of directly employed civil servants in my Department.

Government Departments: Huawei

Jo Platt: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many Government services are (a) provided by and (b) reliant on Huawei.

Mr David Lidington: The Cabinet Office does not hold figures on the supplier agreements of each government service. Departments are responsible for making their own risk based procurement decisions.